Everybody Must Get Stoned
by ShanghaiLily
Summary: After new year's 1980, huge fights break out between Eric & Donna and Jackie & Hyde. Both feeling the need to escape their problems, Jackie & Eric drive the VC to Mexico. Who gets shot? Who flees the country? Who comes out of the closet? This is a zenfic for J/H & D/E shippers, but you J/E shippers will get a to have some fun in the beginning. M scenes are marked at the top. DONE!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own that 70's show. If I did, it would have been WAY dirtier and it wouldn't have ended on such a terrible note. (Fez and Jackie? Really?)**

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**Originally this was supposed to be a companion piece to _What a Long Strange Trip It's Been_ and _The Long Road Back_, but it went in such a wild direction that I just made it it's own story, so please think of it as a stand alone piece. What can I say? Sometimes these things write themselves!**

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**Seriously...buckle up...it's going to get crazy.**

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"**EVERYBODY MUST GET STONED"**

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**CHAPTER 1**

.

As Jackie's lips meet Fez's at the top of the stairs at the Forman's house, she waits impatiently for what she anticipated would be an internal explosion of fireworks. What she gets instead, is more like a glow stick at a carnival street fair.

.

Sure, he's doing that thing he always does with his tongue, and it feels nice – nice the way a massage is nice – kind of relaxing. She was looking for something that was decidedly the opposite. She wanted to feel her knees falter, her breath catch, and her head get dizzy. It's at this moment that she realizes she has a made a big mistake. No, scratch that—a huge mistake. Not only isn't Fez the right guy for her, but she would now carry the burden of having smashed his beautiful heart into tiny little pieces.

.

Then there is the matter of her living arrangements. She would most certainly have to move. How can one little kiss be so destructive? Maybe she is cursed? Eric always claimed she was.

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Just when she didn't think things could get any worse, she hears familiar voices gossiping about her just below the landing.

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* * *

.

"Can you believe it? Jackie and Fez? It's like an episode of the Twilight Zone" cackles Donna.

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"Whatever" the burn-out responds, not willing to pull back his mask of zen.

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"I mean, how much lower can she go? She's embarrassing herself" she insists.

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"Fez is a cool guy. It's not his fault she's so desperate. She's so afraid of being alone, she'll latch onto anything" he shrugs, trying to hard to have an out-of-body experience.

.

He doesn't want to think about his ex banging other guys, much less one of those guys being his weird little foreign friend. He knows she's just taking advantage of Fez's kindness. He also knows she has to be pretty far gone to have gotten this bad, and the worst part is that he is painfully aware that he's the guy who drove her to the edge of this cliff.

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"Desperate? They need to invent a new word for the shame spiral she's been riding. She's gone from prissy prude to skanky slut all over the course of one year! I can't believe I was ever close friends with her" the blonde scoffs.

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Hyde shifts in place and looks Donna directly in the eyes. "It's pretty obvious to me that you never were," he says as he skulks off into the basement.

.

The amazon brushes off the burn and decides to go look for Eric.

.

* * *

.

Jackie pulls away from Fez, wondering if he heard the chat as clearly as she did. He did, and it's written all over his face.

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"They're wrong, Jackie" he empathizes as he runs his thumb down the side of her face.

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Frozen with embarrassment, Jackie shakes her head. "What if they're right?"

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"Why would you take anything Donna says seriously?" he wonders. "She's been nothing but a bitch and a lousy friend to you lately."

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"I wasn't talking about her" she says quietly as she releases Fez's hand.

.

He looks at her long and hard. "I knew it. I fucking knew it all along. I was stupid to think somebody like you could ever love somebody like me."

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Jackie panics as she watches the last person who truly cares about her slip through her fingers. "No, Fez, I do love you. I do!" she cries, wrapping her arms around him, trying to will it to be true.

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He pulls her off of him. "No, you don't. I can see it clearly now. It's amazing what you can convince yourself is true when you want something badly enough."

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"Please don't leave me, Fez. You're all I have" she sobs.

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"Wish I could say the same, but I never really had you, did I?" he tells her. "Happy New Year, goddess. Hope the 80's treat you better than they've been for me so far" he says as he walks away from her, down the stairs and out of the house.

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As the front door angrily slams shut, hot tears begin to prick Jackie's eyes. She slides down the wall and lands in a messy heap on the floor, gasping for air and praying for everything bad in her life to just end.

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* * *

.

Out of the corner of his vision, Eric spots Donna walking towards him in the kitchen. He holds his breath, hardly believing that he's finally back in the same room with her.

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Africa had been a challenge, but one that he was passionate about. For the first time in his life he felt important, like a man, like what he was doing with his life was worthwhile. Smoking up in his parent's basement had it's place, but he'd started to outgrow all of that and wanted to make his life count for something. His buddy Charlie never got that choice and he wasn't about to let himself become just another Point Place footnote.

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He hadn't counted on missing her so much though. He tried his best to soldier on, but it's hard to throw yourself into something completely when half of you is living on the other side of the world.

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"Hey Eric" she coos, playfully slapping his arm.

.

Two pairs of green eyes shoot in Kitty's direction. "You know, I'm out of champagne. I'll see you two kids later" she grins wildly, getting the picture. Though still a little upset with Donna over the whole Randy situation, she's thrilled to have her baby home finally and wants him to be happy.

.

Finally alone again, his eyes sparkle with affection. She's always been able to understand him without words. They have their own special language of looks and sighs, and often that's been the only way they've been able to truly convey to each other what they can't say out loud. Eric was never great with words.

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"So" he speaks, giving her his best half-lidded bedroom smile. He wants to pull her towards him, but he holds himself back. She looks even better than he remembers and absence has only made his passion for her burn brighter.

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"So" she responds, narrowing her eyes into a seductive squint. It feels so good to see him again, despite the white hot resentment she's been stoking over the past six months. Confusing as it was to both curse his name and cry for him at the same time while he was gone, she can't help but feel pure joy to be around him now. She missed this, even if she still kind of hates him for taking it away.

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"Wanna go downstairs?" he asks, hoping to get her alone.

.

She nods and grabs his hand tightly.

.

* * *

.

Sitting alone in the basement looking dejected, Hyde nurses a beer.

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"Hey man" Eric yells from the staircase, his face lighting up at the sight of his best friend.

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"Forman" Hyde nods solemnly.

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"I know we haven't gotten a chance to really talk..." he starts awkwardly.

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"It's cool" he responds, dismissing him.

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Eric cocks his head to the side. "Is it?" he asks, already knowing the answer deep down.

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Hyde jumps up and heads towards the stairs. "You guys probably want to be alone, so uh, later," he says as he runs up the other set of stairs to the outside.

.

"That wasn't weird or anything. Not at all," he muses.

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"Well, what'd you expect, Eric? Things kind of went to hell after you left," she explains, with a slight edge to her voice.

.

"Remind me how that was my fault exactly?" he asks, pulling his mouth into a lopsided line.

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"He needed you. He went totally off the rails" she continues.

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"Again, I ask how any of this is my fault? It's not like I was next to him in Vegas, stuffing dollar bills into his stripper-wife's g-string," he laughs self-consciously.

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"But after it happened, you never...you never helped him," she says, getting flustered by his lack of understanding.

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He furrows his brow, then raises a finger in confusion. "How was I supposed to help him? I was busy building wells in Africa."

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"Yeah, exactly. He needed you here and you were busy in Africa helping a bunch of strangers. You have no idea what he's been through," she scolds, knowing full well she's using Hyde as a surrogate for her own feelings.

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"Donna, he's a big boy. He made his own mess without me there and he needed to clean it up himself - which he did a crap job of, by the way," he tells her.

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"Yeah, my point exactly" she mumbles.

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"It wasn't my problem, and even if it were, he wouldn't have liked what I had to say to him anyway" he claims defensively.

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Her ire has been lifted. "What is that supposed to mean?"

.

"He had Jackie and he chose to be with a stripper? A _stripper_! Over Jackie! He really shouldn't have needed my advice to know what an insane move that was, and you know what? I wouldn't have lied to him about it. I would have told him the truth, that he was ruining his life, and he would've hated me for it," he rationalizes.

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Donna is taken aback. "First of all, you never met Sam. She happened to have been very nice."

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"Yeah, I'm sure she was lovely for...a STRIPPER." he balks. "Definitely the type of woman you want raising your daughters."

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"When did you get to be so judgmental, Eric? It's not really attractive" she hisses.

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"Let me ask you this, Donna. When I was in Africa, supposedly letting my good friend Hyde down by not supporting his _crazy_ life choices, where the hell were you, exactly?" he questions, starting to get tired of her inquisition.

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"What's that supposed to mean?" she asks curtly.

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"I was on a different continent, but you were here in the basement watching the whole thing go down. Where was your great advice? He's your friend too," he jabs.

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"I told him what I thought," she informs him.

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"And what was that, exactly?" challenges Eric.

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Donna looks sheepish as she leans against the banister railing. "He asked me if I thought he and Jackie would be able to work out their differences and I told him I didn't. I said I thought he should try to make his marriage work."

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The words hit Eric like a lead balloon. "Oh my God. You pushed him into the arms of that woman. No wait, you screwed over your best friend and then played matchmaker with your oldest buddy and a bigamist who takes her clothes off for cash. I mean, who are you? This isn't something the Donna I know would ever do. I don't even recognize you," he says sadly, shocked by her disloyalty.

.

Her eyes begin to tear as she averts her gaze. "Lately, I don't recognize me much either" she admits. "And for that, I completely blame you."

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Eric swallows hard. This is not going the way he had planned. He was so desperate to see her again that he didn't even take into consideration that the woman he may be coming back to could have changed into somebody entirely different.

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"Donna, I'm sorry I left you, but I'm not sorry I left," he explains. "I needed to do this. For us" he asserts as he runs his hands through his hair nervously.

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Donna guffaws. "For us?"

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"I was doing it for our future!" he insists angrily.

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"I gave up everything to be with you and then you left me here in this postage stamp-sized town while you traipsed around the globe. What about me?" she cries.

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"You could have done the same" he suggests weakly. "That's why I broke things off with you, so you could explore the world freely."

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"I didn't want to 'explore the world freely', I wanted to be with you! And then you dumped me in a fucking letter. A letter, Eric! We were engaged..." she weeps, shaking her head as he reaches out for her. "Don't" she threatens firmly.

.

His emerald eyes glow with emotion. "I love you, I never stopped loving you."

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"Yeah, just not enough to stay" she sighs. "Why don't you just go, Eric? Get out of here. Leave! That's what you're good at" she says flatly before heading upstairs again.

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"Donna, wait! I came back for you." he panics.

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"Why? I clearly don't matter to you as much as you think I do," she sighs.

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"That just isn't true. Donna, you mean everything to me," he croaks, his voice pregnant with feeling.

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"I've moved on already and so should you," she snaps before disappearing through the door at the top of the stairs.

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Eric wanders downstairs and sits dumbfounded on the couch, then buries his face into his hands.

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* * *

.

Jackie is sitting on the Pinciotti stoop alone, drinking champagne straight from the bottle.

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Hyde, who is covertly smoking a joint, notices her across the way and sits on the Formans' stoop. "Hey" he mumbles in her direction.

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Jackie snorts, irritated that he'd have the audacity to greet her after ruining her life.

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"What's your problem?" he gripes. "You know what—forget it. I don't have all day," he chuckles to himself over his burn.

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"Why do you bother?" she wonders aloud.

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He glares at her, unwilling to take the bait.

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Eric wanders up the back stairs of the basement unnoticed, just in time to catch the fireworks.

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Jackie stands unsteadily. "If you think I'm such a bitch, such a desperate slut, why do you even bother burning me, Hyde? I'm not worth your time, right?"

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He feels guilt creeping in, but pushes it aside and remains zen. "Maybe it amuses me to see how much lower you can sink. Heard you got dumped by Fez tonight. The bottom can't be too far off now, sweetheart."

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Jackie winces from his slam. "Well, yes, it should be interesting to find out just how far down I can fall. I mean, I'm _so_ afraid to be alone that I'll just throw myself at the nearest guy, right?" she yells. "Oh, unless that nearest guy is you" she laughs bitterly. "Even a desperate slut like me couldn't sink that low."

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Hyde feels himself getting hot with anger. "Just because I dumped your ass and married somebody better- -"

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"You didn't dump me Hyde, and she was no wife - she was just the dirtiest hangover in history. That's what you had" she slurs, pointing at him.

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"How much have you had to drink anyway, Jackie?" he asks, genuinely getting concerned for her.

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"Not enough to find you remotely attractive. I know that's how you select your women nowadays," she snaps.

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He's really pissed now. "Just remember Jackie, I picked a drunk whore to marry over you. That's how badly I _didn't_ want to spend the rest of my life with you."

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Furious, Jackie launches her empty champagne bottle and watches it shatter at his feet. "Edna had the right idea about you," she says calmly as tears silently stream down her face.

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Hyde's stomach rises to his throat as his eyes register the betrayal he feels from her last barb.

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Fearing violence, Eric quickly runs into the middle of the fray to break it up. "Enough! That's enough."

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A huge wave of relief sweeps across Jackie's features. She leans her head back and sends a silent prayer upwards for Eric's perfectly-timed entrance.

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"Come to join the party, Forman?" Hyde asks sarcastically.

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Eric looks at his sometimes brother with utter disdain. "Not if you're the one hosting it, man" he says with disappointment, as he crosses over to the Pinciotti stoop, collects Jackie, and ushers her into the passenger's side of the Vista Cruiser.

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He quickly takes his own seat then turns his head to look upon his battle-scarred friend with pity. "I'm so sorry, Jackie" he tells her with heartfelt emotion.

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Though she's not his favorite person, he never hated her as much as he let on. In fact, by the time he left, he actually rather liked her. Guess Hyde's presence left her changed positively in one regard. It didn't matter one bit though. Even if he did still hate her - wrong is wrong - and if she had to endure anything close to the vicious attack that he witnessed here tonight on a regular basis, he was going to have her back regardless who it pissed off.

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As he puts his car into gear he wonders what the hell went wrong the day he stepped on that airplane. He barely recognizes any of these people anymore. Is there any reason he should join this circus too?

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Jackie's right cheek is pressed up against the window as she gazes at the blood moon ahead.

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Eric gets it now why Hyde always used to call her his doll. Looking at her, beautiful but broken on on the seat next to him, she did look too perfect to be real. Like a child's favorite baby doll that accidentally fell on the side of the road during a move. Beautiful, but damaged and forgotten.

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"Where do you want me to take you, Jackie?" he asks timidly, almost too afraid to disturb her.

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She gazes over at him with mismatched, bloodshot eyes. "Just drive. I don't care where" she hoarsely whispers, then silently turns back towards the window.

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**A/N – What do you think? This is the only part of the story that is based on canon. The rest will be a wild ride. So you know, it will start out with a little J/E but if you've been reading the other ffs I've written, you know everybody ends up with the right person in the end ; )**

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**I'm dying to know what you think so far. Sound off in the reviews section and let me know!**

**PS-there should be somebody getting high in every chapter, so keep your eyes peeled!**


	2. Chapter 2

**This chapter is very much PG. Sorry smut-lovers (of which I am one).**

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**CHAPTER 2**

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Hyde is in front of the Formans' house, sweeping up the broken champagne bottle. Donna wanders out of the kitchen door and notices him there.

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"What happened here?" she asks, bringing the garbage pail closer to Hyde.

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"Seems I've lost my touch with the ladies" he sighs as he finishes sweeping the remainder of the glass into the dust pan.

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Donna looks around. "I'm going to assume this is Jackie's handiwork."

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He shrugs.

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"What did you say to her this time?" she wonders, unable to fathom what he did to get her so violent. Everybody knows the midget is a little hothead who isn't afraid to give an odd pinch or swift kick to the shins, but even at her worst she's never seen Jackie do anything that could genuinely hurt somebody.

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"I'm not feeling chatty, okay?" he snaps at her.

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Sensing something really troublesome occurred and not wanting to be alone herself, she decides to see where this goes. Donna slides onto the ledge of the porch and watches him finish cleaning.

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"Have you seen Eric?" she questions nonchalantly.

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Hyde brushes the last bit of glass into the can and throws the dustpan on the floor. "Yep".

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Donna's heart leaps as she waits in vain for further information. Getting impatient, she stands up and walks over to face her friend directly. "We had a fight. Well, not so much a fight as a radioactive meltdown. Can you tell me where he went?"

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"Donna, I have no idea where he went. He wandered out here, decided to play the hero and then took off in the cruiser" he snaps, getting irritated by her constant questioning. He's not in the mood to rehash one of the worst evenings in his recent memory.

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Her brow furrows in confusion. "What do you mean he 'played the hero'? Who was he rescuing?"

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He stares at her for a moment like she's a moron, then grabs the garbage can to return it to the garage.

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Instantly, she gets it. "Jackie? He saved Jackie?" She starts to follow him. There's no way she's letting him walk away without giving her a better explanation. "What did you do to her that she required rescuing?"

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He drops the can roughly and turns to her. "What part of 'I'm not feeling chatty' don't you get? Jeez, it's like you got dumber when you went blonde."

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Brushing off the insult, she assumes a power stance and continues her interrogation. "You're gonna tell me what happened, Hyde, or I'm going to hound you until you do," she threatens.

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"Suit yourself" he blanks her.

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Hand on hip, she stares him down, refusing to back off.

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"Fine. I may have started shit about Fez dumping her and might have implied that she's hit rock bottom" he recounts, slightly embarrassed.

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"Fez dumped her?" she asks, feeling suddenly bad for the things she said about Jackie earlier.

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"Then I kind of rubbed it in by telling her I married a drunk whore because it was better than spending the rest of my life with her" he quickly mumbles, trying to block out the memory of her pained expression when those words escaped his lips.

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"Wow. I can't imagine why she'd want to throw heavy glass at you," she deadpans.

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"She was pretty drunk and Eric saw it was going downhill fast, so he stepped in and grabbed her then took off," he says. "I'm an asshole and he's a fucking Medieval knight. Nothing new."

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* * *

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After driving for 15 minutes in total silence, Eric pulls the car into an apartment complex and turns off the motor.

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Jackie snaps out of her reverie and looks around. "Why did you bring me here?" she asks with a shaky voice.

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"Fez told me this is where you guys live" he answers.

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Her body becomes rigid as she looks up at her front-facing apartment on the second floor. "Eric, I can't go in there. Not after tonight. I really can't," she pleads.

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He sighs and takes his seat-belt off. "You're going to need a change of clothes at some point though, right? The ones you're wearing are covered in champagne."

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She frowns, realizing what a huge mess she's become over the course of a few hours.

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"Do you want me to go in and get your stuff?" he volunteers.

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Jackie's face lights up. "Thank you thank you thank you, Eric!"

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He grimaces. "All right, reel it back to a five on the Jackie Burkhart Richter scale. I'm too jet lagged to deal with anything higher tonight."

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She nods and grabs his hand and smiles. "Thank you"

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He thinks for a moment. "Give me your keys" he demands.

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She hands over her keys and Eric leaves the car. As she watches him climb the stairs, she can't help but break out into hysterical laughter at her predicament. Who would have foreseen a scenario where everybody hated her but Eric Forman? The irony is killing her—literally.

.

* * *

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Donna and Hyde are still outside, sharing a bottle of Jack Daniels now.

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"It's cold as fuck out here, Donna," he informs her while blowing hot air on his hands. "He's not coming back tonight you know, so you may as well stop waiting here."

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"You don't know that. We don't even know where they've gone" she says, drawing another hit off the bottle.

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"We know they didn't go to Jackie's. Fez was mumbling something about tossing all of her shit out as he ran past" he tells her, trying hard to push away thoughts of his doll living in a cardboard box on the street corner.

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"He kicked her out? What happened?" she wonders, suddenly very concerned for Jackie's welfare. She knows better than anybody that her friend has no safety net and no family around who cares.

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Hyde takes a long swig. "Well, I can only assume they overheard our little conversation earlier and then he ditched her."

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Donna's stomach tightens. "The one near the stairs? What would make you say that?" she questions, slightly panicking.

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"Jackie did a lot of quoting during our fight tonight" he admits. "Her mind is like a steel trap" he says, pointing to his own head.

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Donna grabs a handful of her own hair. "Oh my God. I've managed to ruin four people's lives tonight."

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"Impressive" he grins as he takes another drink.

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Donna's mind is spinning as she goes over the conversation she and Hyde had and then recalls her subsequent fight with Eric. "Hyde, have I changed?"

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He shrugs. "Doesn't everybody?"

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"I guess. I mean, Jackie's changed. She's not as...Jackie-ish as she used to be and she seems more grounded," she assesses, absentmindedly biting her thumb. "Fez too, he's a lot less weird. And Kelso has completely grown up."

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"So?" he wonders, defensively.

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Donna looks at Hyde with a mark of sympathy. "You haven't changed much at all."

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* * *

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Eric returns carrying two suitcases filled with Jackie's stuff. He opens the back seat of the Vista Cruiser and unceremoniously chucks them inside, knocking them into his own duffel bag.

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"That was fast" Jackie remarks, surprised. "Did you have any trouble finding things?"

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"Nope" he responds tight-lipped, looking at the steering wheel.

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Jackie quickly realizes what his failure to make eye contact really means. "He packed me up, didn't he?"

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Eric nods slowly. "I really don't know what the fuck is wrong with everybody. It's like I wandered into a mirror universe, like on Star Trek. Hyde practically has an evil goatee –okay porn 'stache- and I keep expecting Kelso to show up with a long facial scar wearing a gestapo uniform instead of his Chicago police one!"

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"Kelso is Sulu?" Jackie asks for clarification.

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Eric is both confused and slightly disturbed by her understanding of his rant. "You watch Trek?"

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Catching her own slip up. "No" she shakes her head.

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He lets it go. "Seriously though, I know he's pissed off, but how could Fez do that to you? Homelessness is a little bit of an extreme punishment for turning a guy down, don't you think?"

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"He was mad and it's his apartment. I understand, I guess." she says, defending him.

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Eric bangs his hand on the steering wheel, startling her. "No. You know what? That's no excuse. So he got his heart broken? That means he can't wait until the morning to chuck you and all of your stuff out into the hallway?"

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Jackie looks stricken. "My stuff was sitting in the hallway?"

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"I didn't want to tell you that part," he nods, tensing his jaw.

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"Can we get out of here now?" she asks, trying to stay calm. "Please," she pleads, looking up at him with red-rimmed eyes.

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"Do you want me to take you to Donna's?" he offers.

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Jackie starts coughing as she's about to speak. "No. That's the last place I want to go."

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The boyish man is very still for a moment, almost afraid to ask. "Why?"

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She bites her lip, trying to figure out how much she should say. She's pissed as hell at Donna, but knows that Eric loves her dearly and doesn't want to shatter his perfect image of her. He doesn't deserve that, not after he came all this way to see her.

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"We, um...we just have had our differences lately. That's all," she lies.

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"Jackie, I know she told Hyde to stay married to Samantha," he says with compassion. "That's why, right?"

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The brunette beauty is completely gobsmacked. "She WHAT?" she yells, nearly shattering the car windows with it's force. As it hits, she becomes slightly hysterical at the news. "She told him-no. You must have heard something else and gotten confused. There's no way she would do that to me. No way! She knows how much I loved him. How much I still-no. That would make her a..tr..traitor" she screams, gulping for air.

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Eric is gutted. He never would have said something if he knew she was in the dark about it. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her more tonight than has already been done. She's suffered enough. He's a little worried now, because he'd assumed that this was what Donna and Jackie's whole rift had been about. If things aren't touchy because of this, then who hell knows why Donna's pulled away from Jackie.

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"God. I feel like such an asshole. I thought you knew," he sighs placing one hand on her back to soothe her. He's never seen her this vulnerable before and it's a bit frightening. He always assumed she bled ice.

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Red-faced, with tears streaming down her face, Jackie turns to Eric and grabs his hands tightly. "You're not an asshole. Please don't blame yourself, just because your girlfriend is an evil wench who ruined my life."

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"Let me drop you off at a friend's house" he offers sympathetically. "You need to get some rest."

.

Her face is gripped by tears but she manages to fight them back. She shakes her head no. "I know it's pathetic, but you're kind of my only friend right now. Fez isn't talking to me, Donna is a raging bitch, Michael lives in another city, and Steven..." she buries her head in her hands. "Why does everybody hate me so much? What happened to me, Eric? What happened to my life?" she asks, her melancholic eyes trying to search for answers in his face.

.

He sadly shakes his head, deep in thought. "I don't think anything happened to you, Jackie. I think something happened to all of them. You just wanted to be loved, but you rolled the dice on the wrong guy," he says with uncharacteristic seriousness. "That letter you sent me was really just the tip of the iceberg, really. Wasn't it?"

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"Nobody has been the same since you left. That's why I wrote you. And yeah, it was the tip of the iceberg," she admits.

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"You know, you're the only one who wrote me besides Donna?" he confesses.

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"Steven didn't...? Of course he didn't" she says, answering her own stupid question.

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"I figured things had to be pretty bad when I got a letter from the mistress of the dark. I mean, postage from the underworld has got to be a fortune," he jokes, hoping a little levity might bring her out of this.

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She laughs, despite herself then takes a long cleansing breath. "So...what am I going to do now?"

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"That's the question of the night, isn't it?" he states, raising his eyebrows.

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* * *

.

Hyde's become incendiary at Donna's insinuation. He's had a tough enough night getting bitched at by Jackie and he doesn't need a second helping from another angry broad. "What the fuck are you trying to get at, Pinciotti?"

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"I'm one of your oldest friends. Do you want me to be straight with you?" she asks him very seriously.

.

He sits back down on the ledge and rubs out the crease in his forehead. "No! I don't know."

.

She turns his face towards him. "I want to apologize to you. I think I gave you really crappy advice about what to do about Sam," she begins.

.

Hyde laughs bitterly. "Ya think?"

.

"I realize now that I was jealous. Kelso was already gone. I didn't want Jackie to leave me too and I sure as hell didn't want you going along with her. With Eric in Africa, I just felt like everybody was vanishing and I would be left here all alone" she starts to get misty. "I was scared to be alone."

.

Hyde paces out into the driveway to think about the bombshell she just dropped on him.

.

"You're so scared of putting yourself out there and I just gave you permission to do nothing," she explains. "I sabotaged your life for my own benefit and I am so so sorry, Hyde," she says, stifling a sob.

.

"Donna, I make my own decisions, okay?" he says, trying to remain impenetrable. "And I'm not scared of anything."

.

"Oh yes you are!" she insists.

.

"Ever stop to think I like my life the way it is?" he grumbles.

.

"Well, you do radiate happiness" she says sarcastically.

.

"When did this become about me? Weren't we talking about how you ruined everybody's life?" he retorts.

.

"I think I pushed Jackie away because I was so embarrassed. I fucked her life up and it was easier to sideline her than to really look at what I'd done," she explains.

.

Hyde stops pacing and looks at the floor for a long time. "I think I can relate to that" he mumbles to himself.

.

"You know, you and I are a lot alike, Hyde, and as crazy as it sounds, Eric and Jackie are too. They're both dreamers and optimists and it's why we love them" she theorizes.

.

"I don't lo-" Hyde says reflexively before Donna cuts him off with a sharp look.

.

"It was always so weird to me when people would ask me why I was with Eric, when I honestly wondered what he was doing with me. Eric is so light and positive. It's impossible for me to be in a room with him and not smile. He makes the best out of every bad situation, he makes me believe that good things are possible...and he never gives up. I need those things in my life. There's never been anybody for me but him. I can see why now, because look what I turned into without him here," she says thoughtfully.

.

Hyde pulls off his glasses and runs his hands over his face. Why does Donna always have to be so fucking right. It's so much easier to trudge along without having to examine shit all of the time. Examining your life means actually doing something about it or owning your laziness and choosing to do nothing. He's not sure he has the fortitude for either of those.

.

"Do you want to know the reasons I love Jackie?" she asks, hoping he'll join in.

.

He shakes his head. "I don't need your reasons. I have my own."

.

"You and I let life happen to us, Hyde and I'm sick of doing it. I don't know where Eric is right now, but when he does get back, I want him to be proud of me. It killed me to have him look at me the way he did tonight, with so much disappointment. I can't do that again" she resolves.

.

Hyde nods in agreement. He gets it, but he's not sure he can do what she's asking of him.

.

"Please let me make things up to you. Please let me help you get her back" she says. "She still loves you Hyde, I know she does."

.

He licks his lips and shakes his head. "It's a lost cause, Donna. I went too far over the line."

.

Donna walks over to him and loops her arm through his. "Think of how many times life has knocked Jackie down, but did she stay down? No! Because she's Jackie Burkhart and she never gives up!"

.

He smiles, remembering his little doll's pluck. She always believed so much in him, more than he believed in himself. Maybe it didn't matter if her faith was misplaced. Maybe the most important thing was that she had faith in him at all. She believed he could be something, and since he believed in her, shouldn't he have been able to just put his faith in that?

.

He doesn't have to be an Oxford professor to know that nobody ever went places spending their time working minimum wage and getting high in a basement while complaining about the government. Does he want to go places? He ponders this for a moment and decides definitively that he _does_ want to go places, as long as he can be sure she'll be waiting for him when he gets there.

.

"Do it for yourself. Become the best Hyde you can be and I know she'll come back. Let me help you." his blonde friend insists.

.

He scratches the top of his head and throws caution to the wind. "You win, Big D" he says hoarsely and then feels himself smile for the first time in months.

.

* * *

.

The Vista Cruiser is standing at a crossroads – literally–at the crossroads that take people in and out of Point Place, WI.

.

"I feel like this decision would be much easier if we had access to Gandalf's staff" Eric says thoughtfully.

.

Jackie blanches. "Okay listen, you've got to cut down on the dorky stuff if we're going to be in a car together for a long time. I have a limit."

.

"...says the woman who knew Sulu wore a Gestapo uniform in the mirror world," he smirks.

.

A blush spreads across Jackie's face. "Fine. You know my secret. I watch Star Trek. That doesn't, however, put me in the same 'Titanic-sized' boat as the guy who knows the names of all of the village hobbits in Lord Of The Rings."

.

"Jackie, how on earth do you know what a hobbit is?" he asks in a mock-surprised tone.

.

"Forget it" she scowls.

.

"I'm kidding! Come on. I promise not to mention the fact that you are clearly a HUGE closet nerd if you promise to allow me 100 references a day to something sci-fi, fantasy or magic-based," he bargains.

.

She looks intently at him and narrows her eyes. "20".

.

"Ha! I reject that offer. How about 75?" he questions.

.

"No, 30" she says, playing hardball.

.

"50?" he asks weakly, feeling himself losing ground.

.

"No, 30" she repeats firmly.

.

"How about 40?" he smiles, hoping to charm her into agreeing to a higher number.

.

"Sorry Eric, the number is 30. You want to make it home alive, don't you?" she huffs.

.

"Deal" he grumbles, secretly pleased that he has 30 opportunities to annoy her each and every day on their trip. "But I pick the music and that is not negotiable."

.

"Hey—are you sure you want to go somewhere? I mean, you just got back and your parents are probably going to be super angry" she warns.

.

"Jackie. I need time to think about what I want to do with my life. I don't think I can do that in Point Place" he tells her.

.

"Okay. Then I say we should head South" she suggests, pointing to the road leading in that direction. "I always think better when I'm tan. Maybe it'll be the same for you?"

.

Eric nods. "South it is, m'lady," he slips the car into gear. "But Jackie...if you start to get annoying, I want you to know that I have absolutely no problem leaving you to die on the side of the road, like a nameless, red-shirted Starfleet officer."

.

"You have 29 left, dork" she says as she leans her head against the window and watches her hometown disappear from view in the side mirror.

.

**A/N – DRAMA! This has turned into quite the angsty fic, but I think it's going to lighten up a bunch in the next chapter. Please read and review. It really means a lot to hear from everybody who is taking the time to read the story. Your opinion matters!**


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

.

Jackie is at the wheel of the Vista Cruiser, driving extremely fast. Eric is slumped in the passenger seat, face pressed against the window in a puddle of his own drool.

.

Somewhere between dreamland and reality, he hears the faint strains of an enthusiastic Jackie dueting loudly with Pat Benetar to the rockabilly song "I need a Lover" and wonders if he's died and gone to hell.

.

_**I need a lover that won't drive me crazy**__**  
**__**I need a lover that won't drive me mad**__**  
**__**I need a lover that won't drive me crazy**__**  
**__**I need a lover that won't drive me crazy**__**  
**__**Someone to thrill me, and then go away**__**  
**__**I need a lover that won't drive me crazy**__**  
**__**Someone that knows the meaning of ah - hey hit the highway**_

.

Jackie is feeling perky and rocks from side to side in her seat as she eyes the road.

.

Feeling the effects of a hangover without the benefit of having been drunk, Eric wipes the drool off of his mouth with the back of his hand and slaps his face a few times to wake up.

.

He looks around at the landscape and is totally disoriented. Just over 24 hours ago he was sitting in a village in rural Africa and now he's in the middle of..."Where the hell are we, Jackie?"

.

Her head snaps around and she greets him with a sunny smile. "Good morning sleepy head! I was 20 minutes away from checking you for a pulse."

.

"How long have I been asleep?" he wonders, still having no clue where he's currently driving through. Illinois? Missouri? Where? She certainly is driving awfully fast. In fact, he didn't even realize the Cruiser could go this speed.

.

"Umm...eleven hours. Approximately" she shouts in between verses of the song.

.

_**Well I've been walking the streets in the evening**__**  
**__**Racing through this human jungle at night**__**  
**__**I'm so confused, my mind is indifferent**__**  
**__**Hey - I'm so weak, won't someone shut out that light**_

.

"Wait—what?" he asks, assuming he must have heard her incorrectly. "You said seven, right?"

.

She shakes her head and laughs, bopping to the music harder. "No Eric, _eleven_, as in two digits," she says, taking her hands off of the wheel for a second to hold up both of her index fingers.

.

_**Electricity runs thru the video**__**  
**__**And I watch from this hole I call home**__**  
**__**And all the stonies that are dancin' to the radio**__**  
**__**I got the world calling me tonight on the phone**_

.

"I've been out for ELEVEN HOURS?" he asks again, hoping not to get positive confirmation of this. "Jackie—where are we, seriously?"

.

"You taught English in Africa, so I assume you can read it too" she teases, pointing at a road sign that says _"You Are Now Entering The Great State of Texas"_.

.

Eric's eyes nearly fall out of his head. "You need to pull over," he says, almost to himself.

.

_**I need a lover that won't drive me crazy**__**  
**__**I need a lover that won't drive me mad**__**  
**__**I need a lover that won't drive me crazy**__**  
**__**Someone that knows the meaning of ah - hey hit the highway**_

.

He turns off the radio and shouts "Pull over!"

.

Disgruntled, Jackie does as she's told. "Jesus loser, you didn't have to scream," she sneers.

.

Eric opens the door to the Cruiser and steps out, blocking the harsh early afternoon sun from his eyes. He walks around in a circle, trying to get his bearings, then grabs his hair and kicks a stone as far as he can. "Fuck!"

.

Jackie's back stiffens. She can tell she's in trouble for something, but she's not exactly sure what she did wrong. He told her they would drive South. He agreed to let her take the wheel when he got too tired to drive. She opens the car door and walks around to join him.

.

"Jackie, What have you done?" he screams.

.

"I don't know? What have I done?" she asks seriously.

.

"We're in fucking Texas!" he yells, unable to understand how she's remaining so calm.

.

"Were we not supposed to go to Texas?" she wonders, cluelessly.

.

"When I said we should get away for a while, I figured maybe we'd head to Chicago or Nashville even, if we were really daring, but Texas? Texas!" he questions hysterically in a high-pitched way, sounding uncannily like his mother.

.

"Actually...I was kind of headed towards the border," she admits sheepishly.

.

Eric's mouth falls open but words fail to escape his lips.

.

"I told you I think better with a tan. Where did you think that could happen in January?" she addresses him with the gently condescending tone she always used to use with Michael.

.

He paces back and forth for a moment then stops to look her in the eye. "Are you fucking high?"

.

She bites her bottom lip and averts her gaze. "A little bit".

.

He starts swearing under his breath and pacing wildly. He meant it as hyperbole. He didn't actually think she was really high. Shit.

.

"They were only diet pills, Eric. You know, to keep me awake so I'd be okay to drive safely," she smiles hopefully.

.

He points at her incredulously. "You took amphetamines so you could stay up and_ 'safely''_ drive for eleven hours to Texas?" he laughs angrily. "After being drunk off your ass earlier in the evening!"

.

She rolls her eyes. "I was sober by the time I took them, it that makes you feel better."

.

"Sure Jackie, that makes it soooooo much better. Yay." he twirls his finger in the air with hostility.

.

She shrugs. "Look, that's pretty much how it all went down. Deal with it. Oh, except I wasn't headed towards Texas. I mean, seriously Eric, would I be caught dead in Texas?"

.

"You might be" he responds, meaning right now. He takes a deep breath and tries to remain calm. "Why don't you tell me where you were headed, sweetie," he asks, speaking with the measured patience once might use with a small child.

.

"Um, Mexico. Duh!" she answers, wondering how one person can be so dense. How can he not use his common sense. What borders Texas that would appeal to her? Not Arkansas or Oklahoma, and those were the closest. Clearly they were headed to Mexico. Is he an idiot?

.

"What's in Mexico, Jackie" he hisses, speaking her name like a curse.

.

She shifts uncomfortably on her feet and looks him directly in the eyes. "My mom" she says in the smallest voice imaginable.

.

His face softens and he shakes his head. "Get in the car" he orders.

.

She smiles broadly and starts to scurry toward the driver's seat.

.

"I'm driving" he announces. "And if I catch you doing speed again I really am going to leave you behind like a red-shirt Starfleet officer."

.

She jumps into the passenger's seat and waits for him to walk around and sit down next to her. Her eyes glow with admiration for him as she leans over to plant a kiss on his cheek.

.

"What was that for?" he asks, holding his cheek where she kissed him.

.

"You know" she lilts melodically and grins. "You can pretend all you want that you think I'm the devil, Eric Forman, but I know we're friends."

.

He tries his hardest to hold back a smile. "You are as crazy as a droid driving a landspeeder" he smirks, "but I can't deny that you have a certain charm about you," he says, instantly realizing he's given her a compliment. "But if you ever tell anybody I said that, I will ignore you so hard it will feel like you're wearing Perseus's cloak of invisibility," he warns.

.

She rolls her eyes and snorts loudly. "Slow down Foreplay, or you're going to burn through all of your geek passes before we even reach the border."

.

* * *

.

Donna and Kitty are sitting at the kitchen table making a pie in silence. The blonde carefully slices apples while the older woman rolls out the dough for the crust. There is an undercurrent of accusation and hostility in the room, but nobody says a word.

.

Finally, Donna can't take the silence anymore. "There hasn't been anything on the news about an accident" she volunteers.

.

Kitty nods. "The hospital said they'd call if they heard anything."

.

"I'm sure they're just, you know, out at a bar drinking...at 4pm." Donna nods.

.

"I'm sure you're right...because if there were ever two people who knew how to hold their liquor, it's Jackie and Eric," she says, nearly choking on her own words. "Speaking of liquor..."

.

Donna quickly stands up to grab an open bottle of pinot grigio and refills her neighbor's glass.

.

Kitty sighs and greedily drinks the entire thing in one go. Donna eagerly refills, with a forced smile plastered on her face.

.

The women sit and the table and stare at one another.

.

At the same time, they both decide to speak:

.

"Mrs. Forman, Eric and I had a-" Donna cries. / "What did you do to my precious baby?" Kitty hisses.

.

Just at that moment, the phone rings and they each fall silent, nervously eyeing each other and the phone.

.

Red walks into the room and picks up the phone. "Forman residence," he answers calmly. "Hello! We were wondering when we were going to hear from you!" he smiles.

.

Both Kitty and Donna stand up and walk towards Red.

.

Red nods and grins. "I'll tell her, and a happy new year's to you to, Midge," he says as he puts the phone back on the receiver. He shoots Kitty a look of exasperation. "I'll be in the basement if you need me."

.

The ladies go back to tending the pie.

.

Mrs. Forman glares at Donna. "You need to fix this. I want my baby boy home!" she stifles a sob.

.

Donna nods her head and leaves the kitchen, shuts the glass door behind her and weeps as soon as she's out of eyesight. She knew this was her problem to fix, but she didn't know how to even begin to go about it.

.

She dries her eyes with her sleeve and looks at the parking space where the Vista Cruiser once lived. That spot used to be her favorite place in the whole world—sure, it was just an old, beat up car, but when he was sitting there with her, it was as magical as Cinderella's pumpkin.

.

She'd spent every day during the last two years of high school and beyond there practically. Not the last six months though—which were the worst six months of her life. Without her boyfriend sitting next to her on the hood, the Cruiser wasn't any more special than any other piece of junk. With him though, it was an oasis.

.

For a couple of short hours, when Eric was back, the world seemed right again. Now he's gone again and the parking spot is empty and she feels pretty empty too.

.

She closes her eyes and wishes in vain to turn back the clock to a simpler time. Things used to be so easy for them and she felt confident and knew who she was. The irony isn't lost on her that a person is supposed to discover who they are as they get older, not lose themselves. Sometimes people lose their way, and she is pretty certain she couldn't right her way even with a compass. She does know one thing, she used to like herself a lot more, and so did Eric.

.

Maybe one has to go backwards before they can move forwards properly? Anything is worth a shot at this point-so backwards it is, she decides.

.

* * *

.

Red walks downstairs and finds Hyde sitting in exactly the place he expected him to be, mainly because he never seems to be anywhere else. He exhales loudly to get his attention and the young man turns off the television.

.

The older man grabs two beers from the shower. "Son, we need to talk" he starts, clapping Hyde on the shoulder before sitting down next to him.

.

Hyde was pretty much expecting this chat at some point, he just didn't know when. Red can pretend all he likes that he doesn't care much for Forman, but Red's a dad and Eric's his kid. No dad wants to stay up all night wondering whether his son is safe or lying dead in a ditch somewhere, No real dad, anyway.

.

"You want to give me a rundown on what happened last night?" he starts, trying not to make Hyde feel too cornered. He knows from experience that the best way to get his surrogate son to speak is to just lay some bait, kick back and have a beer and then wait for him to come to you. He almost always does. "Why don't you just start by telling me what happened with The Loud One."

.

The kid fidgets with his glasses and crosses his legs the other way. "We had a fight" he says simply. "She and Fez overheard Donna and me talking about the two of them and then Fez dumped her."

.

"Hijab was with Jackie?" Red questions angrily. "Talk about punching above your weight," he balks.

.

Hyde manages to hide a smile of satisfaction knowing his dad shares his opinion on the matter.

.

"Then what?" he demands to know.

.

"Then she drank a lot and I was kind of mean to her and then Forman stepped in and broke it up. Afterward, he put Jackie in his car to drive her home," he explains, registering a mark of pride on Red's face as he's listening to an account of his son's mature handling of the situation.

.

Red thinks to himself that maybe Eric's not such a dumbass afterall. "So what happened after he brought Jackie home?" he asks.

.

"He didn't bring her home, sir. Fez, um...he kind of kicked Jackie out of his apartment. They were roommates, but it was his place," Hyde continues.

.

"Let me get this straight-something you said made Tonto mad enough to dump Jackie and kick her out of her home-and then instead of apologizing and helping her, you rubbed it in her face and made her cry? Am I missing anything?" he wonders, balling his hands into fists to keep them from wringing his kid's neck.

.

"No, you've pretty much got the gist" he responds, shame quickly oozing out of every pore of his body.

.

Red shakes his head. "I'll never understand why you won't leave that poor girl alone. You've put her through enough of your crap," he grumbles.

.

Hyde nods in agreement. "Yeah, I don't think I understand it myself" he mumbles, averting his eyes.

.

Mr. Forman rubs his hand up and down the front of his face to relieve his tension. "Do you have any idea where they went? Does Jackie have any relatives around?"

.

He shakes his head, feeling even lower now that he remembers she truly had nowhere to go that night. "She doesn't have anybody...but us I guess."

.

Red laughs. "Anybody but you? She may as well be in the middle of Siberia in that case, and believe me, if anything happens to that girl -or Eric, that's exactly where I'm gonna kick your ass to."

.

Hyde nods. "I think it's probably best if I get packing then" he mopes, as he stands up to leave.

.

"Stop!" Red shouts. "Sit your ass back down. You're not going anywhere, Steven. You think I want three missing kids to worry about? There isn't enough wine in Wisconsin to ply Kitty with if I have to hit her with that news."

.

"What can I do?" he asks, desperate to help fix the situation.

.

"Son, I think you've done enough," he says firmly as he makes his way back upstairs.

.

Red was wrong. He hadn't done enough, not by a mile. He had barely done anything. Eric went to Africa, Kelso had a baby and got a cool job in Chicago, Fez is building a career for himself, and Jackie—well she'd probably be famous right now if he hadn't fucked that up for her.

.

In contrast, he's still getting high in his daddy's basement, sleeping with high school girls and having his meals cooked by mommy. The only real accomplishment he has is owning and working at a record store, but even that was handed to him by a guilty absentee bio dad. He did nothing to earn it and he did nothing to improve it. He did just as much work as was needed to keep it afloat and maintain the status quo. In fact, his whole life has really been just one big fat status quo.

.

Donna was right, he hadn't changed at all.

.

The only bright spot in his life was Jackie. Now she was an accomplishment, because nowhere in the rulebook does it say that the gorgeous, overachieving cheerleader ends up with the local burn-out. He made that happen for two years, despite his many fuck ups. He may not have done it well, but being her boyfriend was the only thing he ever put any effort into. He worked for it, he wanted it more than he'd care to admit, even if he knew full well he was ill-equipped for the job.

.

Other than that maddening lovable pixie, his life has been a steady flow of rotten sewage.

.

For once in his life, he's determined to get a fucking mop and clean this shit up.

.

* * *

.

Jackie and Eric walk into the lobby of Las Cinco Palmas Resort in Tampico, Mexico and immediately feel giddy.

.

"This place is swanky, satan. Are you sure we can afford it?" he asks warily.

.

"You can practically buy a house in Mexico for $5, doofus. Foreign money is like Monopoly money" she proclaims while smoothing out her clothes. "Besides, if my mom is still here, she totally has some sugar daddy picking up the tab—and if she does—then you had better fucking believe that we will too, because she owes me big time," the tiny brunette says, with slightly too much hostility.

.

Sensing an incoming meltdown, Eric wraps one arm around his friend and gives her a light squeeze to let her know she doesn't have to deal with everything alone.

.

She smiles at the unexpected contact and grabs his forearm. "Come on" she says she she pulls him towards the front desk.

.

"Oh, this is pretty cool. What is it?" Eric asks, pointing to a long wall with an interesting texture.

.

"It's made from coral" she answers.

.

"Looks like carbonite. You know, what they froze Han Solo in?" he notes.

.

"You're skating dangerously close to the number 30, Forman," she warns.

.

"Interesting fact –the coral habitat of a halo fish was shrunk by spiroid epsilon waves in the Star Trek episode 'The Terratin Incident'," he informs her earnestly.

.

Jackie looks at him with a mixture of pity and repulsion. "How does Donna have sex with you?"

.

"Um, she doesn't, and hasn't for six months, which is why I'm doling out anecdotes from Star Trek instead of doing it in a hot tub with her somewhere," he tensely reveals.

.

"So what you're saying is, if you were having sex in a hot tub this _whole thing_ would just stop? Like completely?" she narrows her amber eyes in curiosity.

.

He clears his throat nervously. "Probably not completely, but it would certainly be reduced by 90% at least" he estimates.

.

She nods her head as she processes his response. "Good to know" she says as she approaches the front desk to speak to the manager, then turns back to him "Let me handle this. If you talk, you're probably just going to screw it all up. Bueno?" she orders while pulling her hair out of a ponytail to make herself look sexier.

.

"No problemo" he concedes as she attempts to check them into a room. As he observes Jackie twirl her hair and flirt with the attendant in Spanish, he tries to figure out whether she was just hitting on him earlier or burning the hell out of him. It was definitely one or the other. Or could it have been both? He also wracks his brain trying to decide which he'd prefer.

.

Her laugh is musical as she tosses her raven tresses over her shoulder to charm the man with the keys. The man nods and coos at her as he wanders into the back room to photocopy their passports.

.

She turns around and beams at Eric, giving him the double thumbs up. "Pam is here and I made them give us the biggest suite they have left and they're going to bill it to her 'papi chulo'," she whispers excitedly.

.

He smiles and returns her thumbs up. "Burn!" he stage whispers as they both giggle.

.

The man returns with the key and hands it to her, but not before forcing her to let him kiss her hand first.

.

She grabs her friend's arm and pulls him towards the elevator bank. "They're going to get our bags for us and bring them up. Our suite has a giant living room, a huge terrace and even a hot tub!" she squeals as she drags him onto the lift.

.

Eric wonders if he just heard her correctly. A hot tub? In their room? This trip is getting weirder by the hour.

.

**A/N - See, I promised less angst and I delivered! What do you think? I tried to make Donna horrible in the beginning so you'd all forgive E/J for what they're possibly about to do, but I really want to redeem her, because I liked Donna before the dreaded season 8 and always thought she and Eric were adorable. Hyde is more troublesome. Though you know I love me some H/J, objectively, he is a huge loser at the moment, and I don't believe she's self-loathing enough to take him back without major changes. So-get ready for some major changes :)**

**.**

**PLEASE review and let me know what you think. Each and every time I get an email alert saying you've written a critique I get a rush! If you're reading and liking, let me in on it...**


	4. Chapter 4

**I swear I'm working on the other fics, it's just this one is kind of coming so quickly to me, I figured I should go with it before writer's block sets in. I plan to work on Long road tomorrow, so hopefully I can post a chapter of that soon.**

**.**

**Many of you have remarked at how big of a B!tch Donna is being. First of all, she kind of was a huge B during the season that shall not be named. Secondly, I really want her to work on herself so she deserves our beloved Eric. In my fics, she struggles a lot with depression, so this will factor in. **

**.**

**CHAPTER 4**

.

Jackie is in the master suite tying on her bikini and sarong. Eric is waiting in the living room for her to finish dressing.

.

"Come on, Jackie! We're about to lose the light" he complains, as he flips a Mexican peso coin back and forth over his fingers.

.

She emerges from the room, ready to rumble. Part of the reason that her getting ready was so lengthy is because she is trying to work up the courage to deal with an encounter with her mom. And she's bound to encounter her, because if there's one thing mommy dearest can't resist, it's a good tanning opportunity.

.

Eric is completely taken aback by how beautiful Jackie looks. Of course, he's always known she was attractive—he has eyes—but he's always been so besotted with Donna that he barely noticed her in that way. However, Donna isn't here now, and he can't seem to stop staring at her, like Fez might admire a bag of gumdrops, and it is freaking him out.

.

"What?" she asks him nervously, as she tries to fix her curls. "What's wrong with me?"

.

She wants to know what's wrong with her? Um, nothing! He shyly smiles. "Nothing. I just—I thought I saw a bug," he says covering for his perverted stare. What the fuck is he doing? If Hyde ever caught him checking her out like this he'd kick his ass. Then again, why would he give a shit after the way he treated her on New Year's. Clearly he's not still holding a candle for her.

.

A little gawking never hurt anyone, right?

.

He watches as she brushes herself off nervously. "No bug" she breathes a sigh of relief upon finding nothing. She heads towards the exit and places her hand on the door knob, then promptly takes it off again. She does this twice more until Eric walks over and puts his hand on top of hers to turn the knob.

.

"Thanks" she mumbles, and he can tell that she's shaking.

.

"What's going on with you?" he questions, genuinely concerned. It's obvious she hasn't been right since he put her in the passenger's side of the Vista Cruiser the night before last, but she's been slowly unraveling since they stepped foot in the resort. He just wants to get a handle on what he's going to be dealing with.

.

"I can't do this yet." She shakes her head. "I need a drink."

.

He pulls her back inside the room and opens up the mini bar. "We have the standards. There's vodka, tequila, gin and whiskey...also my mother's personal favorite, peach schnapps, something called a wine cooler, a half-bottle of pink wine and Kahlua, which is bound to make a second appearance later on, should you choose to go that route."

.

"Tequila" she says decisively, surprising Eric.

.

"Huh. I was expecting you to choose pink wine. It's pink, Jackie, you know you want it" he grins waving the half-bottle in front of her face.

.

"Tequila. This way I can have a margarita later on without mixing liquors. I puke when I mix" she confesses.

.

"Tequila it is" he confirms, bringing out two mini-bottles, as well as a plastic squeeze bottle of lime juice in the shape and color of a lime. "We are in Robin Leach territory now" he announces as he shakes the lime juice "Very classy".

.

She stands up and takes the salt from the breakfast bar area. "Lick" she orders as she sits next to him on the floor.

.

They each lick the tops of their hands and she sprinkles salt on both.

.

He opens both bottles of tequila and hands her one. Holding his aloft and toasts "To finding ourselves!"

.

"And losing_ them_!" she adds. They lick their salt, clink their bottles and down the shots. Eric then gently squeezes several drops of lime juice on each of their tongues.

.

"Ahh. This is the life" he says mockingly.

.

"Why are these so tiny? Nobody can possibly get wasted on bottles this tiny" she whines while holding her empty up the the light.

.

"Why don't we let Pam Burkhart buy us some bigger bottles of booze?" he suggests helpfully.

.  
"No I like these. They make me feel like a giant! Plus they're so much less cost effective than getting a big bottle and I want to make this week particularly expensive and embarrassing for her," she tells him, while opening up another bottle and downing it straight.

.  
Jackie lays herself back into the plush carpet and makes a snow angel in it. Looking at her in that bikini, with her sarong all hiked up around her waist, he finally gets it. He used to think Hyde was crazy for getting mixed up with her. He figured he had to be a masochist, or she must be doing something kinky between the sheets to get his normally stoic friend all up in arms over her. He has no problem understanding why Kelso loves her, since he's shallow and she's gorgeous – and the reasons Fez is obsessed with her are a no-brainer too, but Hyde has always been a huge question mark to him.

.

But those eyes...crackling with life, haunted by something intangible, smoky, seductive, flirty and innocent all at the same time—that's what hooked him. He can see it now. She has something about her that's both repellent and irresistible at the same time, but if you truly know Jackie, you understand that the repellent stuff is just a tough facade to protect the irresistible, fragile core beneath.

.

He suddenly feels irrationally jealous that Hyde has been able to enjoy this side of her for so long and yet he was too shallow to see it before now. He also wonders how his friend could be so dumb as to throw away something so obviously good for him. Maybe that's it. Maybe he knows she's too good for him?

.

* * *

.

Donna, now back to being a redhead, runs down the exterior steps of the basement and swings the door open.

.

In the room, she finds Fez and Hyde, drinking together side by side.

.

"Well hello there sexy lady. I am Fez" Pretending he doesn't recognize her, he extends his hand out in jest.

.

Donna playfully slaps it away. "What do you think?" she asks as she gives them a twirl.

.

"Daddy likes" the foreigner coos. "Spicy".

.

Hyde glances up at her, then back down to his beer. "Glad to see that the drapes match the carpet once again," he grins lopsidedly.

.

"Do you think Eric will like it?" she worries.

.

Hyde shakes his head. "He can't like what he doesn't see, Pinciotti" he slurs callously, clearly having had too much to drink.

.

She plops down next to Hyde on the couch. "He's coming back though" she both asks and informs him at the same time.

.

Hyde shrugs. "Remains to be seen."

.

"If I were taking a sexy holiday with Jackie, I wouldn't come back either" Fez expresses.

.

Hyde looks as if he just bit into a lemon. "What do you mean by sexy holiday?" he asks as he swallows the bile currently rising in his throat.

.

"Let me see if I can explain this to you like a child. Eric is a boy and Jackie is a girl. Neither one of them has had sex in six months..." he starts.

.

The stoner's eyes practically bug out of his head. "Wait! What do you mean she hasn't had sex in six months? She dated you!"

.

"Just what I said," Fez confirms. "I know you're bombed, but I don't have to connect the dots for you".

.

Hyde puts his beer on the table and runs his hands through his hair. "Why?'

.

The brown-skinned man exhales loudly. "You are starting to make Kelso look like the smart one, Hyde".

.

Hyde tries to focus on the conversation, but the only thought that consumes him is that his little baby doll waited for him. That's why she never dated anybody else and why she wouldn't let Fez touch her.

.

All this time, he sat next to her, hating her for giving away what he felt was still his, and she hadn't been able to even do it. If he had been kinder to her, maybe listened to her once in a while, he would have seen this and maybe, just maybe, they would have been able to work things out. What he chose to do instead was call her a dirty whore in public on several occasions. Sound judgment has never been a personal strength of his.

.

Donna is still reeling from her friend's accusation. "Fez, you don't really think Jackie and Eric...I mean, they don't even like each other!" she insists.

.

"That's what we said when she dated him" the little guy shrugs, pointing to Hyde.

.

"No, Eric wouldn't do that to me. He's practically my brother" Hyde rationalizes.

.

"Do what to you? You made it pretty clear to everybody that you were over Jacqueline. You even married somebody else" he reminds him. "Exactly what about your behavior would lead Eric to believe you remotely cared what happened to her?"

.

"Says the guy who tossed her out of his house" Hyde slams.

.

"I'm not proud of the way I acted that night. I was hurt and pissed off, but at least I can own up to my mistakes," he seethes. "And I'm going to make it up to her if it kills me."

.

Donna pipes in. "Okay, but what about me? Eric wouldn't dick me over like that, screwing around with my best friend."

.

"Didn't you tell him he needed to move on with his life, because you already had?" he asks.

.

Her hands fly up to her mouth. "Oh my God".

.

"And all of us got an earful of what you really think of your best friend Jackie on New Year's, so I'd say it's safe to return the other half of that friendship heart charm." he stands up. "So like I said, they are on a sexy holiday, and I for one, am jealous."

.

Hyde pushes his beer away from him and stands up. "I gotta go do something" he says in monotone as he walks into his bedroom.

.

Once on the other side of the door, his face crumples up as he fights to keep himself from crying. "Fuck!" he screams internally, unwilling to let on to the others that this is affecting him. He has sudden flashes of Forman's hands all over her body, touching her breasts, putting his mouth on her sensitive areas, pumping her hard with his..."

.

Hyde runs to his garbage can and vomits twice.

.

He wipes his mouth off and starts frantically looking for his stash. He needs to find a way to mellow out, because thinking about the possibilities sure as hell isn't helping with that. He searches high and low, but the weed is nowhere to be seen.

.

Just as he's about to get violent, he has a thought: Jackie. She's done this before to get back at him, stealing his stash. That woman really knows how to hit a guy where it hurts, he'll give her that. It doesn't matter to him though, because all the weed in the world isn't going to make him forget about her or stop him from imagining what his best friend and his best girl might be getting up to together on their 'sexy holiday'.

.

* * *

.

Jackie lights up a joint and passes it to Eric, who takes a drag off of it.

.

"You've got to be the only person in history to traffic drugs INTO Mexico" he says as he flips through the 8-track cassettes in the room. He spots one his likes instantly and shoves it roughly into the player.

.  
"Hey, Mexicans need to get high too, dork!" she jokes.

.

_**They'll stone you when you're trying to be so good  
They'll stone you just like they said they would  
They'll stone you when you're trying to go home  
They'll stone you when you're there all alone  
But I would not feel so all alone  
Everybody must get stoned**_

.

Jackie smiles and gives him the appreciative head nod. "Perfect" she says, referring to the song choice. She may be a disco-loving former-cheerleader, but she can appreciate a good Dylan tune as much as the next person, and this one was the best.

.  
"I can't believe you stole Hyde's stash. That's pretty badass," he rocks his head to the music and gazes at her with admiration as she blows smoke his way.

"Believe it! I stole the whole thing. He should be feeling preeetty tense right about now" she says as she starts evil laughing like a movie villain.

.  
"Oh how very Blofeld of you" he smiles, then points at her accusingly. "You are a drug mule though".

.  
"I know. I am a drug mule!" she continues laughing hysterically.

.

_**They'll stone you when you're walking on the street  
They'll stone you when you're trying to keep your seat  
They'll stone you when your walking on the floor  
They'll stone you when your walking to the door  
But I would not feel so all alone  
Everybody must get stoned**_

.

"Do you ever feel like a song was written with exactly you in mind?" she asks.

.

"Why do you think I put this on?" he responds, grabbing the joint off of her. "Hog."

.

She snorts.

.

_**They'll stone you when you're at the breakfast table  
They'll stone you when you are young and able  
They'll stone you when you're trying to make a buck  
They'll stone you and then they'll say good luck  
But I would not feel so all alone  
Everybody must get stoned**_

.

"I wish I didn't care so much" she whispers as silent tears roll down her rosy cheeks. "And I wish I were stupid. Ignorant people don't know how good they have it" she decides, wiping away her errant teardrops. "Who knew Michael Kelso was the luckiest man alive?"

.

Truer words were never spoken. Eric feels the same way for different reasons and he's just as paralyzed by them as she is. He lays his head down next to hers on the carpet and takes her hand to offer comfort. "This isn't about Hyde, is it?" he asks.

.

She shakes her head, then pauses to think. "Yes and no," she says then looks him directly in the eyes, nearly stealing away his breath. "Why are you here Eric?" she wonders.

.

"You kidnapped me, remember?" he reminds her.

.

She sighs loudly.

.

_**They'll stone you when you're at the breakfast table  
They'll stone you when you are young and able  
They'll stone you when you're trying to make a buck  
They'll stone you and then they'll say good luck  
But I would not feel so all alone  
Everybody must get stoned**_

.

"All right, fine. One day last year, I walked into the basement and looked around the room—and I mean really looked at you all, and it dawned on me that we were all drowning alive. I knew if I did nothing we'd all be doing the exact same thing the next year- sitting in our assigned seats, mindlessly coasting towards nothing," he explains angrily. "I woke up the next morning and decided I just couldn't do it anymore, and I couldn't watch you all do it either."

.

"So you left?" she adds.

.

"I left. And I was scared to but I was more frightened not to, you know? And when I got to Botswana, it was hot and buggy—seriously Jackie you never would have slept—and the food sucked when there was food. But you know what? I didn't care. I felt like a man for the first time in my life-no burning me please—and I felt like my life actually made a difference," he says."I felt so alive there and then I came back home and felt..."

.

"I'd love to feel that way" she admits. "Alive".

.

"When I got your letter, I realized that my leaving didn't inspire you all to do the same, as I'd hoped it would, it turned you all into cannibals" he remarks sadly.

.

"Yeah, it was very 'Lord of the Flies' down in the basement. Steven and I were the worst. But I want you to know that you did inspire me. I got a great t.v. job in Chicago and then...stuff happened" she alludes euphemistically.

.

His mouth goes into a hard line. "I know. Like I said before, you rolled the dice on the wrong guy."

.

"Can I tell you something without you burning me later with it?" she wonders hopefully.

.

"I'm not going to burn you" he swears.

.

"Eric, I don't think anybody has ever truly loved me. Not my parents, not Michael, not Donna, and definitely not Steven," she confesses ruefully.

.

"I can't speak for your parents, but you're wrong about the others" he asserts.

.

"Prove it" she demands, turning to him.

.

He tilts her head to the side and looks at her like she's crazy. "When you took Kelso back that last time, he never cheated on you again. He even agreed to marry you even though he didn't want to."

.

"And then he ran out on me and took my best friend with him!" she huffs, remembering her anger that summer.

.

"And then he proposed to you again before he moved. He did that because he loved you," he explains.

.

"Okay, fine. I'll give you Michael, but maybe it didn't feel like love because he couldn't stay true to me. Nothing makes you really feel devotion like infidelity," she snarks.

.

"Donna loves you, she's just really bad at showing her affection" he says.

.

"She shows you affection" Jackie counters.

.

"No, she has sex. She's not very affectionate if it isn't sexual. I mean, it's fine I guess. I know she loves me, she says she does, but sometimes I feel like I'm just a good buddy she has privileges with" he muses.

.

"Privileges?" she gasps. "Is it really a privilege Eric?" she faux-wonders, tapping her chin lightly.

.

"Glad I can amuse you, devil. So happy my manhood could provide you with so much fodder" he continues.

.

She bursts out laughing again. "I'm sorry, Eric, I am. But you did say 'my manhood'," she tries to control her laughter through breathing. "Seriously though, you have no idea how much she loves you. I know she may seem like a cold fish sometimes, but she has it really really bad for you. When Donna's sad about something, she just takes it out on the person closest to her. I'm sure she's more unhappy with herself right now than she is with you."

.

Eric pauses to think about his lost love and wonders if he's misread some of her actions in the past. "Well, it sounds like she took a lot of shit out on you this year, so you must mean the world to her" he grins victoriously.

.

Jackie rolls her eyes. "Let's put a pin in that one for now."

.

Eric nods, then leans over her body to grab another two bottles of tequila and hands her one. "Jackie, do you really think that Hyde doesn't love you?"

.

A look of intense pain sweeps over her face and she downs her tequila to wash it away. "I don't think I can talk about him with you."

.

"Hey. We're like the Wondertwins, Jackie. We work together to bring bad guys to justice," he explains, jokingly.

.

"Eric, sometimes I love him so much that I feel like I'll just shrivel up and die if he isn't with me, but then...I try to remember all the reasons I feel this way, all of the things I love about him, and I can't. How can I love him so desperately if I don't even know why?" she asks, furrowing her brow.

.

Eric takes a deep breath. "First of all, I think we all feel that way about Hyde," he says. "I mean, let's face it—he's an asshole. He knows he's an asshole. Yet for some reason, I cared enough about him to take him home to live with me that one day and he cared enough to stay. And now my parents like him more than me," he tries to chuckle lightheartedly, but his insecurity is transparent.

.

Jackie's gaze softens. "Steven Hyde has nothing on you, Eric Forman. I wouldn't have to think too hard to come up with reasons why Donna loves you."

.

Eric stares at her, open mouthed and in shock. He's about to say something, then decides against it and instead smiles gratefully.

.

* * *

.

There is a soft knock at Hyde's door.

.

"Go away" he shouts gruffly, trying to block out the sound with his pillow.

.

Donna opens the door and lets herself inside.

.

"Are fucking deaf? I said 'go away', not 'make yourself at home'," he grumbles.

.

"Eric and Jackie are in Texas" Donna announces.

.

Hyde forces himself to sit up. "Texas?"

.

"She used her credit card at a gas station in the Eastern part of the state" she reports.

.  
He rolls his eyes and lays back down onto the cot. "Yeah, they're not in Texas, just passing through."

.  
"Why would you say that?" she asks.

.  
"Jackie once told me she had an allergy to cowboy hats and chaps" he tells her, a shadow of a smile appearing on his face with his recollection.

.

"Sounds like her. She has a point about the chaps" Donna nods. "But if they're not in Texas, where the hell are they?"

.

"What borders Texas?" he quizzes her like a grade school geography teacher.

.

Donna thinks for a moment. "Um, Louisianna...Arkansas...Oklahoma...New Mexico...I think that's it".

.

"Anything ring a bell?" he probes.

.

She shakes her head no then pauses. "She did once say something to me about being on a family trip to Mexico and stopping off fr a day in Little Rock on her way."

.

"Jesus Christ" he slams his hand down on to cot hard.

.

"What? You think they're in Arkansas?" she wonders.

.

"No man, they're in Mexico" he says matter-of-factly.

.

"How do you know that?" the renewed redhead questions.

.

"Pam Burkhart practically lives there" he says.

.

"Mexico, eh? That does sound like a sexy holiday" she says bitterly as she unceremoniously leaves his room.

.

**A/N - If you're reading this, I'd love to hear from you! Please post a review and let me know if you liked this chapter!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry if this chapter is a little bit clunky. I've had an exhausting week.**

**.**

**CHAPTER 5**

.

An extremely wasted Jackie and Eric stagger out to the private poolside area. Too high to walk straight, she clutches onto Eric's arm tightly as he guides her to a lounge chair.

.

"You are a mess" he says, shaking his head.

.

She inelegantly drapes a towel over the chair and plops herself down onto it, readjusting her sunglasses as they've been knocked askew in the process.

.

"Jackie Burkhart is never a mess" she admonishes him, as she knocks over the margarita that she pre-ordered.

.

Eric laughs hysterically at her, wiping tears from his eyes. "No, this is good, This is cheering me up" he smiles.

.

"Sit your boney ass down, Forman" she fake snarls.

.

He pulls off his t-shirt to reveal a newly muscled, slightly-tanned physique.

.

"Erica Forman! You've finally hit puberty!" Jackie exclaims, gesturing to his body.

.

He rolls his eyes at her. "Let me know when you do, Jackie" he retorts, while pretending to grab a set of boobs.

.

"Whatever. They may be on the small side, but they're the most perfect pair ever created. Magnificent. That's what Steven always used to say, anyways..." she says, getting lost in a marijuana reverie.

.

"I'll take your word for it" he sighs as he picks up her fallen beverage for her.

.

The formerly skinny dude is pretty sure it's not going to help him much in the long run hearing about his friend's perfect breasts. Now it's going to be almost impossible _not_ to stare at them. Hyde's been with a lot of chicks. If he thinks hers are perfect, Eric can only imagine how incredible they must be. 'Stop thinking about her tits, Forman' his inner voice shouts in his ear.

.

It reminds him of that chemistry teacher he had in eighth grade who had a giant goiter on her neck that she kept swathed in colorful neckerchiefs. The scarves only attracted the eye more. As a 14 year old boy already dealing with the distraction that was the hot redhead sitting behind him, throwing an enormous goiter into the mix only contributed the lack of attention that led to him barely scraping by that year with a C. If Mrs. Krakowski hadn't worn those scarves, he barely would have noticed her deformity- and if Jackie hadn't just told him about her small-yet-perfectly-formed breasts, he's pretty sure he wouldn't be looking at them right now.

.

Okay, that last part is a total lie, but he's sticking with it.

.

"Are you checking out my rack now?" she wonders.

.

"Me? What? No! Of course I'm not...your boobs. No." he twitches in an unintentionally high-pitched tone.

.

"You are" she smiles. "It's okay, everybody does" she wiggles her sunglasses at him.

.

A waiter comes over to assist Eric with the clean-up and Jackie hold two fingers up. "Dos más las margaritas por favor ".

.

"Nah, I don't want one of those girl drinks. I'll just take tequila" he corrects her.

.

"They're both for me, idiot. Y dos tequilas de mi amigo por favor" she requests from the waiter, who nods and walks away with the mess.

.

He sits on the lounge chair next to her and gives her a concerned look. "Shouldn't you slow down a bit. I mean, you only weigh, what—95lbs?"

.

"That's not stopping you" she sticks her tongue out, then pulls off her sarong, exposing her tanned, toned legs, fit from years of topping the cheerleading pyramid.

.

Jackie leans back and feels the bright sun beat down hard on her chest and warm her. Something about being in the heat always cheers her right up. She never really understood why her mom went along with the whole Wisconsin thing, when she'd clearly rather be somewhere sunny. That's one thing she can wholeheartedly agree with her mom on. Maybe they're not so different after all. Progress!

.

"How do you know so much Spanish?" Eric wonders as he works to find the right recline setting on his chair. "I don't remember our Spanish teacher being very good."

.

"I was raised entirely by nannies. Sandra, the one who I spent the most time with, is from Columbia" she divulges casually.

.

"That's..." Eric can't decide if she was probably better off being raised by nannies than Jack and Pam Burkhart. "...a useful skill".

.

Jackie shrugs. "Do you speak any other languages?"

.

Eric ponders for a moment, then opens his mouth to speak.

.

"Clingon doesn't count" she smirks.

.

"Then no" he says bashfully.

.

* * *

.

Donna walks into the basement, finding Fez and Hyde sitting side by side drinking sodas. "This is unusual" she purses her lips in amusement. "didn't expect to walk in out the two of you cozying up together over some pop. Is this your first date?"

.

"We are strategizing" Fez informs her. "That is not something that can be done successfully while under the influence of alcohol."

.

She sits in the lawn chair and observes her two friends. "Are you trying to figure out a way to track Jackie and Eric down?"

.

"No, man" Hyde says, putting down his drink. "They left for a reason. If we try to track them down, it'll just make us look pathetic."

.

"Or...maybe it will prove to them that we really care about them and want them home," she opines.

.

"No way. I'm out. Jackie hates me enough as it is, I don't need to be giving her more reasons to" he sighs.

.

"So what do you plan on doing about it then? Sitting on your ass as usual?" she confronts him.

.

"Donna, the other night you told me to 'become the best Hyde you can be'. I thought I'd maybe try that for a little while" he says.

.

Taken aback, she processes this information with a hint of a smile. "You're really doing it, aren't you? Do you want to talk about it?" she offers.

.

"Um...no." he says flatly.

.

"Come on, Hyde. Maybe I can help?" she whines.

.

"I'm good" he responds.

.

"I could help you draw up a life plan" the redhead suggests.

.

He cringes. "On that note" he stands up and walks toward his room.

.

She turns to Fez. "This is why Jackie is mad at him. He's bad at communicating" she insists.

.

Fez turns to face her. "Yeah. _That's_ why she's mad at him. Columbo better watch his back, because you have cracked the case."

.

"What the hell is your problem?" she snaps.

.

"Can I be honest with you, Donna?" he starts.

.

She shrugs. "As long as you're not rude about it."

.

"You used to be the coolest girl I knew. In fact, you were the coolest girl any of us knew. Then you dyed your hair blond and it's like your soul washed down the sink with your the cheap peroxide" he explains with uncharacteristic seriousness.

.

"What do you mean?" she presses.

.

"Do you remember how the guys – not me of course, because I worship at that goddess's feet – but the other guys used to call Jackie shrill and annoying when Kelso first started bringing her to the basement?" he asks.

.

She nods.

.

He looks at her intently, waiting for her to get it.

.

"Oh my God. Are you calling me shrill and annoying?" she screams at him – then immediately hears the sound of her own voice. "Holy shit! I _am_ shrill and annoying. How long have I been like this?" she asks worriedly.

.

"What day did Eric leave?" he deadpans.

.

She buries her face in her hands. "You're totally right Fez. I feel really on edge lately. And you know, The last day or two I've been reading all of those weirdo psychobabble books my mom left in the house and they've kind of given me a whole new position on my life" she confides.

.

"Are they sex books?" he wonders.

.

Donna laughs. "No, Kelso already stole all of those before he moved. I meant position, like, outlook. I've been really pissed off lately and I think I've been taking it out on everybody else, when I really should've just figured out why I was so pissed off and fixed it" she muses "but I guess that's hard when you don't even realize you're pissed, you know?"

.

"Yeah. I think I did that to Jackie on New Yea'rs. I was mad that she didn't love me, but what made it worse was that I knew she never would- even before we started up. I was kind of depressed about it, but I hid it very well" he says.

.

"You ate, like, an economy-sized bag of Reece's Pieces that night. That was even before you broke it off" she informs him. "Clearly something was bothering you."

.

"But they are pieces. Pieces of Reece's! Nobody can resist those! I would have eaten them regardless" he asserts, waving his hand in her face. "However, I would not have eaten the Twizzlers and the Good-n-Plentys before I left. That was just me being a fatty" he concedes, ashamed. "At least, that's what Jackie said."

.

"Hey Fez. I'm sorry for what I said that night. About both of you" she apologizes, feeling contrite.

.

Fez smiles. "Thanks Donna. You may have a harder time getting Jackie to forgive you though. Oh who am I kidding? She will never forgive you," he warns.

.

She bites her lip to stop herself from crying. "I really miss her Fez. I know I've been a huge bitch, but I miss the way we used to be. There's only so much I can talk about with you boys. I was really lonely before that midget came along."

.

"...and really unstylish. She was really good at keeping you away from unfortunate patterns and workboots" he sighs looking at her boot-covered feet.

.

"That too" she laughs as she wipes a tear away. "The thing is, I miss them both. Both of my best friends are gone."

.

"Maybe this is how she felt when you went with Kelso to California?" he implies.

.

She brings her hands to her mouth in shock. "John Lennon was right. Instant karma's gonna get me!"

.

* * *

.

Bored and overheated, Eric eyes the pool jealously then looks at his dozing drunk friend. He'd love to go for a swim, but if she somehow falls and hits her head or drowns on his watch, he'll never forgive himself. Despite the fun she's pretending to have, he knows she's pretty much dying inside.

.

"Jackie, are you awake?" he asks.

.

"Mmm?" she mumbles, halfway between dreamland and reality.

.

"I think I'm gonna get in the pool. Do you want to come?" he offers.

.

She rolls over to face him. "I can't get this swimsuit wet."

.

His face screws up. "What?"

.

"It's not waterproof" she yawns, stretching her now golden-brown body across the chair. "But it's pretty, right?"

.

"How is your swimsuit not waterproof? How is that possible? That's like saying there are no clouds in Cloud City. It's called Cloud City, there better be some fucking clouds there!" he twitches.

.

"Eric—relax man. Have a margarita" she smiles.

.

"Jackie" he leans over toward her chair. "I've got to admit something to you. I'm really bad at this whole 'relaxing thing'."

.

She starts laughing. "Ya don't say. Listen monkey-boy, you're in good hands. If there's anything I'm an expert on, it's relaxing! I can teach you. Ooh it's gonna be so much fun!" she squeals.

.

"Oh God" he breathes.

.

"What? You don't want to learn to relax?" she knits her brows.

.

"No. I want to relax. I'm just not sure you're the one to teach me at the moment" he warns.

.

"Why?" she asks, looking at him like he's crazy.

.

"Your mom is walking towards us right now" he frowns with empathy.

.

"Jacqueline Buelah Burkhart! What on Earth are you doing here?" Pam Burkhart screeches at her daughter from behind.

.

As Eric watches the tanned and glorious Mrs. Burkhart cha-cha her way down the pool side in a shimmery bronze bikini that exactly matches her skin and hair, he's instantly struck by how absolutely fucked up his friend's family is. He never realized it before, because all he used to notice was how freakin' incendiary the woman was. Hotness blinds a teenaged boy to an encyclopedia of flaws.

.

As for Jackie's dad, Eric never had much of an opinion, other than knowing him to be filthy rich. He couldn't really form one, because he'd only met him twice before he was sent off to prison - twice in ten years. He wonders how many times Jackie saw him during that same time period.

.

Jackie turns around and waves weakly "Hey mommy".

.

"Jackie! Why are you in Mexico? With the Forman boy?" she demands to know. "You're not dating him now, are you?" she hisses in a stage-whisper, completely horrified.

.

Jackie rolls her eyes in Eric's direction. "No. I just...we needed a vacation?" she offers, scrambling to her feet.

.

Pam pauses for a moment. "Oh. Well, you could have called before you came" she complains.

.

"You didn't exactly leave contact information the last time you abandoned me" she retorts.

.

Pam nods. "No. No, you're right. I didn't. Whoops!" she laughs musically, throwing her hands up in the air for effect. "Well, we're together now and I could not be happier to have my baby with me here" she says over-dramatically while squeezing all of the air from Jackie's lungs.

.

Upon release, Jackie loses her balance for a second.

.

Eric leaps up and steadies her. "Are you okay?"

.

She gestures towards the margaritas. "Too many."

.

Pam frowns. "Jackie, are you drunk?"

.

She lifts her head defiantly. "Why yes mom, I believe I am".

.

The bronze goddess smirks. "Well you could have paced yourself until I found you guys. I'll get the next round" she insists, trying to flag down the waiter.

.

"Now do you see why I'm always in your fucking basement?" she mumbles as she wraps her arm around Eric's waist for support.

.

* * *

.

Hyde is sitting in the middle of WB's vast expanse of a living room. He wears his best (aka. only) sports jacket but the fancy clothes and his discomfort wearing them only seem to highlight his feelings of inadequacy rather than help him feel like he belongs, which is what he was going for. He quickly pulls his sunglasses from his face and tucks them into his coat pocket.

.

Jackie always used to tell him to dress like the man he wanted to be and it would happen. He'd never really given that advice any credence, assuming it was just another one of her lame machinations to get him to change the way he dressed for her, but he now sees the validity though. An effort like this, to show his bio dad that he's the responsible sort of guy he can feel comfortable gambling on, is going to require the kind of business confidence that he just doesn't have. If he's going to act like a big man he's going to need a costume. He can at least play the part even if he doesn't exactly feel the part. So yeah, it turns out that Jackie was right. He can admit when he's wrong...to himself at least.

.

"Hey son!" WB says warmly as he struts across his living room to greet his son. Hyde leaps up nervously from the couch he's been perched on and shakes his hand. WB slaps Hyde on the back firmly and gestures for him to sit down again. "Can I get you a drink?"

.

"I never turn down a free drink" he shrugs, before immediately kicking himself for saying something so low rent. Hyde reminds himself that an alcoholic doesn't exactly inspire confidence when making business decisions. But, damn if he couldn't use something to take the edge off. Not smoking up beforehand sure turned out to be a dumb idea. "No. Nope. Thanks anyway, man. I'm cool" he says shifting in his seat.

.

"You sure? You look a bit nervous. I'm not making you nervous, am I?" he asks, truly concerned that the relationship he's been trying to build with his son is backsliding.

.

He runs his hand over his mouth a few times. "No" he says incredulously as he rubs the back of his neck with his palm a few times. "Why would I be nervous?" he smirks, trying to play his dad's keen observation off as a misunderstanding.

.

"Steven...is this visit personal or business-related?" the elegant African-American man looks at him skeptically.

.

"It's...both?" he says honestly. "I, uh, was wondering if I could get some advice from you."

.

A broad smile creeps across WB handsome face. "I always wanted to sit down and give my son advice. I tried that with Angie, but she's such a know-it-all I had nothing to impart. You, on the other hand—you look like a guy who could really use some direction."

.

"Yeah, well uh, that's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about. Direction, I mean. It's recently come to my attention that I could maybe use some of that" he nods, deferentially "from you".

.

WB claps his hand onto Hyde's shoulder. "Jackie's nagging finally wore you down, eh? I knew I could count on her to give you the kick in the ass you needed to get your career ambition on track".

.

"Sort of" he says, hoping to gloss over the whole Jackie thing. "I don't want to be just a store owner for the rest of my life" he admits honestly. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I really appreciate what you've done for me and everything, but I kind of want to um..."

.

"Be your own man? Make something of yourself?" he interjects, helping his kid out.

.

"Yeah. That." he agrees.

.

"Well, what are you good at?" he asks.

.

"I don't know. I guess I'm good at selling shit" he mumbles, mostly referring to pot. "I also know a lot about music."

.

"What about promoting?" he suggests.

.

"What do you mean?" Hyde wonders apprehensively.

.

"Angie was thinking of having Grooves host a concert series. We'd need to organize the venue, do promotion, hold contests, book acts, the whole bag. Is that something you'd find interesting?" he offers.

.

"Hell yeah, I could get into that" he nods, getting excited. "Thanks man."

.

WB leans forward and puts his arm around his son. "I think this is up your alley, and I can't tell you how happy it makes me that you're finally showing some real interest in building up the family business." he smiles. "I'm so glad you got rid of that stripper wife finally and pulled yourself out of the gutter. I was beginning to worry about you," he confesses.

.

Hyde looks at his feet, ashamed. "I'm, uh, sorry if I disappointed you" he says quietly.

.

"You didn't disappoint me, son. Everybody fucks up big at some point. Just be glad you got yours out of the way when you were young and that it didn't cost you anything you couldn't afford to lose" he imparts.

.

"What if it did?" he asks earnestly, his big blue eyes looking up at his bio dad's brown ones in search of answers.

.

"I get the feeling you're not talking about Sam?" he tries to confirm.

.

Hyde shakes his head 'no' slowly.

.

"Give her time" he suggests. "Become the type of guy she always hoped you'd be and she'll give you a second chance, because lord knows you're not going to get her back with a bunch of flowers and a pair of earrings this time. You really hit this one out of the ballpark. It was truly a ten car pile-up. Epic shitstorm."

.

Hyde reaches into his jacket pocket, pulls out his sunglasses and puts them back on his face.

.

**A/N – How's the story coming along for you? I know Donna is still a massive beotch, but I'm going to try to reform her now. Despite how it seems, I really did like her until season 8. I'm sorry, I just had to make her awful enough for people to forgive Jackie and Eric for what you know is coming...**

**.**

**Please review and let me know what's working/not for you in the fic. Also, if you love what you're reading, I would be truly appreciative if you make it one of your favorites so more people want to read it. You guys have been fabulous and I'm really grateful for all of the comments this has gotten so far.**


	6. Chapter 6

**For the record, I'm a traditional, canon-loving T70S girl. I like my D/E and J/H pairings - but if done well, I'm open to reading other Jackie pairings too. For some reason (cough cough season 8) I get a little queasy seeing Hyde paired with anybody but Jackie, mainly because he was such a douche in the last season that I feel he doesn't deserve a fresh start with anybody else and should spend fan-fic eternity making up for his sins against our beloved pixie. It's his sad lot in e-life, IMO.**

**.**

**CHAPTER 6**

.

Eric and Jackie are sitting at a table in the formal dining area having dinner with Pam Burkhart and her sugar daddy du jour, Guillermo Sanchez.

.

There is a middle aged Russian man playing hits from the 70's on a synthetic keyboard while his badly permed Mexican wife sings in a heavy accent, using a child's spiral ruled notebook with the lyrics written out for her phonetically in English.

.

"Jackie, did I mention that Guillermo is a Mexican prince?" Pam brags, trying to find a safe topic of conversation to broach with her resentful daughter.

.

Jackie raises her eyebrows in faux interest, then turns passively to Eric who subtly shakes his head and mouths 'no way'.

.

"You did not." she says thoughtfully, while mindfully eating her salmon. "Fascinating."

.

"His family owns several textile mills in the countryside surrounding Mexico City" Pam continues.

.

"May I ask what you do?" Guillermo asks politely.

.

Jackie looks to Eric for help, then faces the human gravy train to respond. "I'm pretty. That's what I do." she smiles with only a hint of irony.

.

He smiles appreciatively "You certainly are. I can see the apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

.

Pam blushes and grabs onto her suitor's hand vigorously. "Aren't you sweet?" she coos in his ear.

.

"I think I'm gonna be sick" Jackie whispers under her breath to Eric.

.

Suddenly, the "band" strikes up an evocative yet barely comprehensible version of "Babe" by Styx.

.

_**Babe, I'm leaving, I must be on my way  
The time is drawing near  
My train is going, I see it in your eyes  
The love, the need, your tears**_

.

Eric drops his fork suddenly and perks up. Jackie rolls her eyes. "Yeah, because she totally sounds exactly like Dennis De Young."

.

He gets a gleam in his eye. "Wanna dance?"

.

She sighs. "I can't dance to Styx, Eric. Do you know how burned I'd get by Steven if he heard about this."

.

"Uh...last I checked, there weren't any porn-mustchaioed burnouts hanging around the hotel" he quips.

.

She purses her lips. "There were a few by the pool actually" she recalls. "I thought one of them was Freddy Mercury until he hit on me. I'm pretty enough for a gay guy to hit on, right, Eric?" she sucks in her cheeks and shows him her model face.

.

"Stick with me here, Beulah" he snaps his fingers to get her attention. "Hyde isn't around, and even if he were, wouldn't you want to torture him by flagrantly dancing to an awesome Styx song? What a BURN, am I right? It would be like a huge fuck you to The Man—if that man were a 20 year old hophead from Point Place who lives in my parents' basement," he explains. "Come on Jackie, I'm in freaking Mexico with you, you owe me."

.

_**But I'll be lonely without you  
And I'll need your love to see me through  
Please believe me, my heart is in your hands  
'Cause I'll be missing you**_

.

Jackie's face slips into a knowing smile. "Donna won't dance to Styx, will she?"

.

"I think you already know the answer to that" he says grabbing her forearm. "Pam, Guillermo, if you'll excuse us, we have some history to make" he defers as he drags her out onto the dance floor.  
.

"Ouch, dork. You're giving me Indian burn with those grabby hands. Your grip is almost as strong as your lady friend's" she complains as she assumes her position on the dance floor. "I'm tired" she whines. "Let's go back to the table and order a bottle of Cuervo and a giant flan" she suggests.  
.

"Stop whining. Besides, you don't want to go back there right now. Your mom's date, the 'prince', has been looking down your shirt all night" he informs her.

.

"I told you Eric, they're magnificent. Everybody looks at them" she shrugs.

.

Again with the boobs? Jackie can't lay off the tit-talk for a few hours to give a sexually frustrated guy a break? He tries to focus on his footwork. And a One-Two-Three-Four.

.

"Riiiight. Can we stop redirecting conversation to your boobs, Jackie? Not that I'm not riveted, but you know, unless you're planning to share them with the rest of class, you really should put them away," he lectures her.

.

"Whatever, pervert," she groans as she lets him lead her. He twirls her around dramatically and then dips her on the chorus.

.

_**'Cause you know it's you babe**__**  
**__**Whenever I get weary and I've had enough**__**  
**__**I feel like giving up**__**  
**__**You know it's you babe**__**  
**__**Giving me the courage and the strength I need**__**  
**__**Please believe that it's true, babe, I love you**_

.

"Eric, have you been practicing? You haven't stepped on my foot once!" she says proudly. "Donna used to always complain about that."

.

"To be fair, your feet are a lot smaller of a target than Donna's" he admits.

.

Jackie notices Eric biting his bottom lip in concentration and smiles to herself. He's actually kind of adorable when he's not trying so hard to be cool - - though in a totally platonic way, of course. Sure, she bags on him all the time, but she wouldn't do it if she really didn't like him as a friend.

.

Before he left for Africa, she was actually getting quite frustrated by the way Donna was treating the poor guy. He's always so desperate to make her happy and she just takes it for granted - - and even resents him sometimes for working so hard at it. If Steven had put in 10% of the effort that Eric did with Donna, they'd probably be married with a kid on the way by now. Stupid Steven.

.

"You miss her, huh?" she asks, already knowing what he'll say.

.

_**You know it's you babe**__**  
**__**Whenever I get weary and I've had enough**__**  
**__**I feel like giving up**__**  
**__**You know it's you babe**__**  
**__**Giving me the courage and the strength I need**__**  
**__**Please believe that it's true, babe, I love you**_

.

"I do, but not in the way you think. I don't miss this Donna. I miss the old Donna. My juicy." he admits, his eyes getting clouded over with lust for his old flame.

.

"I miss the old Donna too" Jackie agrees sadly.

.

"Jackie...what do you think happened to make her change?" he asks. "Was it because I left?" he wonders, feeling culpable.

.

She closes her eyes and thinks for a moment as he twirls her around again. "Actually...I think it all may have started when Midge left."

.

* * *

.

Donna quickly puts her signature on the doctor's sign-in board in a posh, well-appointed looking office. Instead of sitting right away, she walks around the room looking at the framed photos on the wall.

.

In one corner, there is a complicated-looking Rorschach Test that she decides looks like two seahorses mating. Donna smiles. She likes seahorses, because she always thinks of them as 'the feminists of the sea'. Okay, they didn't exactly hold a reproductive right's rally to earn males the ability to breed, but she can appreciate how evolution completely sided with the women for once. Go seahorses!

.

Further down the wall she sees a photo of Karl Jung and then another frame with a picture of Freud's famous couch.

.

She decides that even if this doesn't turn out to be useful, it has certainly been interesting from an anthropological standpoint. The waiting room alone is worth the price of entry. Most of the patients are women in their 40's, many career women. Some look bitter, some broken, some strangely sedate. She wonders how she must appear to all of them.

.

"Donna Pinciotti" the nurse calls as she waves her over in a friendly way.

.

As she's led to a door at the end of the hallway, the nurse tries to chitchat with her.

.

"Is this your first time?" she asks.

.

Donna nods, wordlessly.

.

"Are you nervous?" the blonde, pretty RN wonders.

.

"Maybe a little bit" she smiles weakly.

.

"Well don't be. Everybody loves it. I've been going for about two years now, and it's really turned by life around" she nods, gently prodding her toward the closed door.

.

The nurse knocks twice quickly, then opens the door and ushers her inside.

.

Dr. Jennifer Goldberg, an attractive 40something woman, dressed in navy, high-waisted sailor pants and a white silk camisole, is finishing up a phone call and holds one finger in the air to let her new patient know.

.

"That's right. Well, you're going to need to keep doing the meditation on a daily basis or it isn't going to help you. No, but you have to do the work, you don't get points for just showing up" she frowns. "Uh-huh. That's right, the appointment is on Tuesday, so I'll see you then. Bye now."

.

She hangs up the receiver and and gestures for Donna to have a seat on the couch.

.

"Am I supposed to lie down or something" she asks apprehensively.

.

"You're supposed to do whatever you think is most comfortable" she smiles.

.

"Oh..." the redhead replies quietly as she sits Indian Style on the couch. "This is okay, right?" she laughs nervously.

.

"Yes. Donna right?" she asks, the continues without waiting for confirmation. "Why don't you start by telling me what brings you here today" she suggests.

.

"My, um...my mom used to come here. She said it really helped her" she confides.

.

"Good. So, did you come because you think you need help too, Donna?" she questions.

.

She twiddles her thumbs for a moment then looks up. "That would be a yes."

.

* * *

.

Hyde is in Grooves, trying hard to get an elaborate Michael Jackson album display from falling down.

.

"Angie!" he yells, looking for his half-sister. "Do you plan on helping me with this at all?"

.

"Steven, you're supposed to be the one helping me," she grumbles as she heads over to steady the falling objects.

.

"Guess I thought we were trying to accomplish the same thing here" he mumbles.

.

She takes a breath. "You know what? You're right." she says. "Dad obviously wanted us to do this together for a reason...whatever that may be."

.

"It doesn't take a genius to figure out the reason" he snaps.

.

With hand on hip, Angie stares at him haughtily. "Okay genius, why don't you explain it to me then?"

.

He looks at the display then back up at her. "Come with me" he says as he grabs her hand, pulling her to the janitor's closet.

.

She taps her foot impatiently as Hyde looks intently for an item amongst the clutter. "Got it" he grins as he pulls out a can of white spray paint.

.

He marches back out onto the floor of the store and over to the spare, brick wall at the back. He shakes the can hard several times, pops the cap off and then writes_** "Michael Jackson OFF THE WALL" **_in graffiti all over the bricks.

.

"Hey! You can't do that!" Angie yells, getting upset.

.

Hyde ignores her as he pushes the giant cardboard cutout of Michael Jackson and the album display and positions them right in front of the wall.

.

His sister's eyes widen. "Oh. I get it now" she smiles. "That's clever. It looks just like the album cover" she nods approvingly.

.

"Not only that, but it's different, it's big and it attracts attention" he says, pointing to a small crowd of kids who have immediately wandered over to look at the display. "I know you have a fancy degree and you know a lot about math and how to manage shit, but –and please don't take this the wrong way- you're a total square and you don't know what normal people like" he explains, hoping she doesn't get offended. Before she's able to respond, he clarifies himself. "What I meant to say- - what I really mean is - - I know what the riffraff responds to, because I'm riffraff" he grins pointing at himself with both thumbs.

.

A subtle look of approval sweeps across his sister's face. "You're not riffraff. You're William Barnett's kid, man" she smiles.

.

"That's right. And I know we got off on the wrong foot, but I want you to know that I'm serious now, okay? I'm not gonna be an unambitious fuck like I was for the first 20 years of my life. I know you have a lot to teach me and I want to learn it" he assures her, his blue eyes burning with passion behind his shades.

.

She shakes her head in disbelief. "Steven Hyde, I never thought I'd see the day. What brought all this on?" she asks.

.

He shrugs. "I figure The Man's bound to get me sooner or later, so I may as well get rich while I wait for the hammer to drop."

.

* * *

.

Jackie and Eric are finishing their dance, much to Jackie's elation. Her feet are hurting, her head is hurting—basically, her everything aches from the inside out. She used to get really sore whenever she took an aerobics class, but jazzercize has nothing on emotional exhaustion.

.

_**Babe, I'm leaving, I'll say it once again**__**  
**__**Somehow try to smile**__**  
**__**'Cause I know the feelings we're trying to forget**__**  
**__**If only for a while**_

.

"Don't look now Jackie, but I think his highness has shoved the royal hand up your mommy's dress" he makes a sour face.

.

She groans. "Seriously. Can we get the fuck out of here already? Getting drunk with her earlier was enough. If I have to pretend to like her for another hour I might rip my own tongue out just to avoid speaking to her" she threatens.

.

He smirks. "It would be rude to leave now."

.

She flicks Eric on the nose. "You would miss my chatter. Who else would tell you what you were doing wrong all the time?"

.

_**'Cause I'll be lonely without you**__**  
**__**And I'll need your love to see me through**__**  
**__**Please believe me, my heart is in your hands**__**  
**__**'Cause I'll be missing you**_

.

Pam waves to Jackie on the dance floor and gives her two sloppy thumbs up for her dance performance.

.

"Our room has American satellite TV and one of my favorite movies is on soon. Please take me there. I'll even spring for the flan!" she begs.

.

"What movie is it?" he asks, reserving judgment.

.

"It's um..." she realizes she's just painted herself into a corner.

.

"This is one of your favorites, right? So—the Star Trek Movie perhaps?" he teases.

.

"No loser. I forgot" she lies.

.

"I'm not saying yes until I know what it is" he taunts gently, holding his ground.

.

"Loghhh...Ruhhh" she mumbles unintelligibly.

.

"I'm sorry, what?" he laughs, enjoying his new-found ability to make her squirm.

.

She stomps her foot. "Fine. It's Logan's Run. But I only love it because Michael York is total a hottie" she insists.

.

He looks skeptically at her.

.

She growls. "Fine! I'm a sci-fi loving dweeb like you. Are you happy now?" she huffs.

.

"Yes. Yes I am" he beams. "This information is going in my back pocket" he mimes folding up a note and shoving it in his pant's pocket. "For future use."

.

"Can we go now?" she pouts, sticking out her bottom lip.

.

He's seen her use this tactic on Hyde many times and he never did quite get why he always gave in so easily, but damn it if that isn't the cutest bottom lip he's ever seen. He theorizes that if Jackie aimed that pout at Superman, it would probably make him cave faster than Kryptonite. He also thinks that Jackie would look hot wearing Ursa's black pleather jumpsuit from those Superman II posters. Pleather.

.

"Fine" he relents as he leads her back to the table by her hand.

.  
_**Babe, I love you**__**  
**__**Babe, I love you**__**  
**__**Ooh, babe**_

.

Pam, who was formerly half in-the-bag when they left the table, has now crossed over into being completely in the bag. "You were amaaaaazing!" she squeals as she raises her arms for a hug from her daughter, too wasted to actually stand for an embrace.

.

Jackie looks down at her mother with disdain, ignoring her physical plea. "Well, you did pay for ten years of dance lessons, so I should be, right?"

.

"That's right" she agrees, trying hard to maintain an 'interested' expression, "and it was worth every penny, because you look just like a princess out there, baby. Doesn't she look like a princess, Guillermo?"

.

The older man nods with a little too much enthusiasm. "She very well does, and I would know."

.

"Right. Because he's royalty" Eric says while smirking in Jackie's direction.

.

She bites her lip to keep from laughing.

.

"You know...at first when I saw the two of you together, I was like 'what's she doing with that Forman boy?', but he's so attentive Jackie. Much more than your father ever was" she trails off for a moment, thinking of her estranged husband Jack. "Anyway, I want you to know that I approve now, okay?" she smiles.

.

"Yay?" Jackie expresses non-enthusiastically.

.

Pam finishes off the rest of her margarita. "He's definitely better than that last guy you dated. Who was that...um...Seth? Scott? No don't tell me—Steven! Right? I knew I'd figure it out eventually. Anyway, he's a million times better than that guy. He was so scruffy and poor," she rambles, scrunching up her face in displeasure. "Just a loser."

.

Hearing her mother talk about her ex this way makes her blood boil. They may have their problems, but he always had her back and she isn't about to let a woman who has barely spent any time with him malign the love of her life. Nobody calls Steven Hyde a loser but her! Jackie's ire has been stoked.

.

"You know what, mom? That 'loser' took care of me for two years while you were traipsing around Mexico enjoying 'the good life'. When I needed a ride somewhere, he took me. If somebody was bothering me, he protected me. And when I got sick or just needed a shoulder to cry on, he was always there. Every time." she starts to cry. "So okay, maybe it didn't work out between us, but that doesn't make him a loser. You should be writing him a fucking thank you note for doing your job" she shouts, before running out of the dining room in a huff.

.

Eric's mouth forms a hard line and he looks pityingly down on the fallen goddess slumping below him on the table. "You really missed out, Pam. Your daughter's one of a kind, and I mean that in the best way possible" he says softly. "Thanks for dinner" he tells Guillermo as he runs out after Jackie.

.

**A/N – This chapter felt choppy and uneven to me, but I'm hoping I'm just being hard on myself and that you see it differently? Let me know in your review—please : ) **


	7. Chapter 7

**Thanks for all of the support and reviews everybody! This chapter starts angsty and then gets a little sexy, but the story is not rated M...yet...maybe...if I can bring myself to actually go there. We shall see.**

**.**

**CHAPTER 7**

.

Jackie bursts through the doors of her hotel room and heads immediately for Hyde's stash. Her head is drowning in memories and she needs a little something to pull her back up to the waterline.

.

She extracts a pre-rolled joint from the brown baggie, lights it and takes a huge drag, feeling that sweet, familiar burn creep down into her lungs where she'll hold it for as long as possible.

.

One-one thousand, two-one thousand, three-one thousand...she closes her eyes and she's ten years old again, swimming with her dad off the coast of Cozumel. He's holding her small hand with his large firm one and she's clinging to him for dear life.

.

In her memory, she grabs her father's hand and ventures out into the surf, fear coursing through every vein in her body. Open water terrifies her - - the threat of the unknown, of not being able to see what lurks beneath the surface and having to rely only on her own ability to get herself back to shore. She's so small and she suspects it wouldn't take very much for her to just float out into the abyss, never to be heard from again. And if it did happen, would anybody notice?

.

Her father told her she'd be safe as long as she held onto his hand tightly. He told her not to lose his grip, no matter what. If she had known this would be the last time he was ever going to offer his hand to her, she would have tried to hold on to it forever. She never did learn how to swim. Her dad promised he'd teach her, but then again, he made a lot of promises he didn't keep.

.

...ten-one thousand...and breathe...

.

Red-faced and sweaty, Jackie can feel the effects of the drug entering her system almost immediately. This shit is strong, or maybe she just wants it to be. It never felt this strong when she smoked it with her ex.

.

Pot can do strange things to a person, depending on their mood. When she's happy, smoking up always turns Jackie into a giggling hyena, unable to hold a thought longer than a funnel holds water. But during those other times, the darker moments when she really needs a hit, that same stash often makes her an introspective mess. Right now, she feels trapped inside her own head with the door locked and she can't seem to find the window.

.

Jackie watches the paper glow and dwindle as she takes another healthy drag. She smiles and wonders if Steven ever found the gift she left behind. When she stole his stash, she didn't take it all. She hid one long, perfect joint in his room, but he probably hasn't found it yet and he's not meant to. She wants him to be desperate. If he's desperate, than he'll appreciate the grass and he'll appreciate her for showing him mercy by leaving it there, not that he ever showed her any mercy.

.

She still doesn't get why she defended him to her mother. Surely, she's said much worse about him to his face. The thing is, if he's such an asshole, why can't she just move on? She hasn't seen any of the things she used to love about him in ages—it's just that even though he's turned himself into a monster, she's almost positive the real Steven is still buried deep within.

.

But the man she loves is long gone for now, to her at least. She's not under any illusions about that.

.

...one-one thousand...two-one thousand...three-one thousand...

.

The hotel room door opens and Eric cautiously walks into the room carrying a tray with flan on it. He braces himself for a massive meltdown but is greeted instead by the loud exhaling of Jackie's smoke.

.

"You're hitting it again? Already?" he asks her warningly. "You've got to slow down. You're turning into Hunter S. Thompson."

.

She looks up at Forman and shrugs. "We didn't really come here to relax, Eric, you know that. We came here to forget." she says as she lifts the joint to offer him a hit.

.

He puts the plastic tray on the edge of the bed and holds out his hand.

.

* * *

.

Rolling the joint back and forth between his fingers, Hyde can't help but believe that the spliff was meant to be a sign. She'd hidden it in the shoebox he keeps under his bed, filled with the casualties of their relationship. Jackie always knew about the box and he was aware she knew, but neither of them ever said a word about it.

.

She must have assumed he'd need an escape if he ever became desperate enough to reminisce, so like the forgiving soul she is, she granted him a lifeline. He would never have done the same for her.

.

Hyde smiles, imagining Jackie probably meaning this to be a reward for thinking about her. Little did she know that's all he ever does nowadays. As he lights the end of the last gift she'll probably ever give him, he watches sadly as the only thing still connecting the two of them goes up in smoke.

.

A sharp knock on his bedroom door snaps Hyde out of his wallowing.

.

Hyde stiffens and clears his throat. "Yeah?"

.

"It's me" Kelso says from the other side of the door.

.

Hyde sighs. He's not in the mood to deal with him right now, but he's sure as hell glad it's not Red. He stubs out the joint carefully to preserve the rest and hides the ashtray behind a book on his shelf. "It's open" he calls out.

.

"Hey man" the tall man utters with trepidation, not wanting to set his angry friend off.

.

"Hey" he responds casually. "Thought you'd be halfway back to Chicago by now."

.

"I, uh, I thought I'd stick around a bit, you know, in case there was news" he tells him.

.

Hyde nods. "Well, I'd probably be the last guy who would have any of that for you".

.

Michael nods and has a seat. "Are you toking?" he asks, sniffing the air.

.

"I had a little solo circle a few minutes ago. Needed to take the edge off" he admits.

.

"You got anymore?" his friend asks with itchy fingers.

.

"Sorry man, Jackie pinched it all before she left" he says, nonplussed.

.

Kelso laughs heartily. "Oh man. BURN! Seriously. Oh wait, you can't anymore, can you?" he lets loose a goofy smirk.

.

Hyde frogs his buddy in the arm hard. The moron king is always good for taking out his frustrations on.

.

"Ow! Damn, Hyde, what'd you do that for?" he frowns. "Jeez, you're always so violent" he pouts while rubbing his arm.

.

"Yeah? Well, maybe I'd be less violent if a 95lb she-devil hadn't stolen my stash" he grumbles.

.

"Oh, but come on man, you kind of owe it to her, don't you think?" he asks.

.

Hyde looks at him quizzically. "How do you figure?"

.

"I mean, I know I wasn't the best boyfriend in the world, and I cheated on her a LOT and all, but I was never mean to her. Not on purpose anyway" he says.

.

"So you're saying I was?" he challenges.

.

"Well, yeah. I kind of told her you would be when you guys first started up, but she wouldn't listen. She said you were different when you were alone with her. Guess she should be the one wearing the stupid helmet now" he figures.

.

Hyde can feel the Jackie box grazing the back of his shoes under the bed and realizes that at one point, he was different with her. It seems like a lifetime ago, but the proof is sitting just two feet under his ass in a paper container.

.

"Be my guest and give it to her, if you can find her" he says flippantly, trying hard to remain zen, despite the gnawing anxiety beginning to eat away at his belly.

.

"You're not worried about her at all?" Kelso looks at his best friend incredulously.

.

Hyde shrugs. "She's rich and she hot, she'll be fine. Her kind always is" he utters snidely as he adjusts his sunglasses, praying his pal won't be able to see his panicked eyes beneath the tinted lenses.

.

Michael tries to catch his gaze, but is immediately shut down. "That's not exactly what I was talking about. Jackie's sensitive, man. I mean, I know it can be really annoying like when she used to make me tuck each of her stuffed animals into bed individually - but it's also pretty cool, like when she stayed in the hospital all night and read me magazines after I fell off the water tower sophomore year."

.

Hyde could feel himself getting jealous. Even though she didn't belong to him then and doesn't belong to him now, he can't help but feel gutted whenever he hears details about her intimate history with Kelso. Her tenderness should belong entirely to him, as irrational as that might sound. "What's your point?"

.

"I don't know, just that she feels things deeply. She's a deep and complicated woman now, which is why I had to dump her. I'm just worried she might do something stupid" he sighs.

.

"Okay, first of all, she dumped you, idiot. And secondly, what do you mean 'something stupid'? I can't even begin to guess what you might consider stupid, Kelso." he remarks.

.

Sensing this is going nowhere, Kelso stands up in a rush. "You know what, forget I ever said anything. I'm probably just paranoid or something. If you hear anything, it'd be cool if could call. Brooke's having trouble sleeping with Jackie missing, she's like 'hold me' all the time, but I've been getting laid a lot more because of it, so..." he considers telling him to cancel that call. "Nah, I still want to know. I may be with Brooke now, but I'll always love Jackie too."

.

"You got it, man" Hyde gives Kelso a frog for the road.

.

"Ouch!" he screams, then smiles. "That was a good one Hyde, I think you hit bone" he says impressed, as he walks out of the room holding his arm.

.

Hyde slumps back onto his bed trying to figure out what the hell Kelso meant by 'something stupid'.

.

* * *

.

Donna is curled up on the couch in the basement reading "_****__The Road Less Travelled" by_**_ M. Scott Peck._**

.

Kelso walks out of Hyde's room and plants himself on the couch next to the redhead, who looks up at him expectantly.

.

"I tried" he shrugged.

.

She frowns. "I kind of expected you wouldn't get anywhere, but thanks for giving it a shot" she nods appreciatively.

.

"I really am worried about her, you know" he admits.

.

"I am too, but she's probably still with Eric, right? I don't think he'd let anything bad happen to her" she says, trying to convince herself of their safety.

.

"I don't know, he's not her biggest fan" he reminds her.

.

"That's not true. I mean, it was when she first started showing up, but now he has a soft spot for her, especially after hearing about the Sam situation" she bristles at her own mention of the stripper's name. Hearing it just reminds her of how unsupportive she was to Jackie.

.

"Okay, but Forman can barely take care of himself" he points out.

.

"I think he got better about that in Africa. At least, I hope so" her brows furrow.

.

Fez descends the steps into the basement from the inside, carrying a plate of cookies. "Miss Kitty is still panic-baking" he explains nervously. "Normally this would not be a problem for me, but as I'm sure you've noticed, I like to showcase my fantastic ass in tight pants" he tells them, pointing to the now unfastened top button on his trousers, "which is beginning to create a problem."

.

Kelso leaps up and over to the stairs. "I'll help you with that little problem" he offers as he tries to grab the baked goods.

.

Fez yanks the plate away and hides it behind him. "I didn't say I was planning on stopping, you son of a bitch!"

.

"Relax guys, there will be more coming. Kitty isn't going to stop baking any time soon. Not until she hears from Eric, at least" she theorizes.

.

"What'd you say to him to scare him off anyway? You didn't tell him you were pregnant, did you? It _totally _scared me off when Brooke told me that" he informs her.

.

"How would I be pregnant? He only came back on New Year's Eve, Kelso" she shakes her head in disbelief.

.

"Yeah, uh, exactly!" he yells at her.

.

She tries to understand what he means for a moment, then gives up and puts the book down on her lap. "Look, not that it's any of your business, but Eric and I had a fight. I already feel like a big enough dillhole as it is, so I'd really appreciate it if you'd just drop it, okay?"

.

"No problem. I am not interested in getting involved in anybody else's baby drama" he says to Fez while holding his hands up. "I'm gonna go see if Brooke is packed" he tells them as he heads up the outside stairs.

.

"What are you reading, Donna?" Fez asks as he sits next to her on the sofa.

.

"It's called "The Road Less Travelled" she informs him.

.

"You're reading an Atlas?" he looks at her with bewilderment.

.

Donna laughs. "No Fez. It's a self-help book about finding oneself."

.

"There's a book to help ladies find their ...you know?" he wonders, grabbing the book out of her hands.

.

"That's not what this is" she says before crossing her legs.

.

* * *

.

Jackie and Eric are lying on their stomachs on the bed, eating flan and watching the end of "Logan's Run".

.

_**Logan**__: NO! Don't go in there! You don't have to die! No one has to die at 30! You could live! LIVE! Live, and grow old! I've seen it! She's seen it!_

_**Logan**__: Well, look! LOOK! LOOK, IT'S CLEAR! [Crowd laughs]_

_**P.A. System**: Lastday, Capricorn 29's. Year of the City: 2274. Carousel begins._

_**Jessica**__: No! Don't! Don't go! Listen to him! He's telling the truth! [Crowd laughs again] We've been outside! There's another world outside! We've seen it!__  
__  
__**Logan**__: Life clocks are a lie! Carousel is a lie! THERE IS NO RENEWAL! THERE IS NO SANCTUARY!_

.

Jackie is rapt while watching the final scene. Eric sneaks a peek at her and smiles. Who in a million years would've figured the head cheerleader for a science fiction nerd? He kicks himself for not learning this earlier when it would've mattered more. He imagines all of the things he could've blackmailed her into doing while she was running for Snow Queen just by holding the threat of Trekkie exposure over her head.

.

Jackie stands up and twists the television knob to the off position and sighs wistfully. "Sometimes I wish Logan's Run were real".

.

Eric sits up. "Is that a joke?"

.

"No, it's not a joke" she shakes her head. "Why?"

.

"Um, because nobody in the film has any parents who raise them, everybody is murdered at age 30 and they're not allowed to fall in love with each other" he responds.

.

"Well, I never had parents raise me really, so that part doesn't seem so weird. Women start looking really old once they pass 30, so if they kill me, then at least I won't have to watch myself get all wrinkly and gross. And the last one is more than fine by me. I'm done with love," she declares as she stretches out onto the bed again.

.

"God Jackie, when you're at a point that you find 'Logan's Run' to be an inspirational movie, it might be time to call it quits." he says, not believing his ears. "I'm praying this is you, bottoming out" he quips, not really joking.

.

Upon hearing this phrase, she tenses up. "You know what? Fuck you, Eric. It's not helping" she snaps.

.

"What did I do?" he asks the universe before crawling over to Jackie, who has now curled up into fetal position and is silently weeping.

.

When he sees the condition she's in, Eric feels like kicking himself. "Hey" he says softly as he pulls the hair from her face and smooths it behind her ear. "Jackie, I didn't mean..."

.

She flips on to her back to face him. "It's not you, Eric. It's just, what you said was...well, it's what he said to me on New Year's, right before things got really ugly" she explains, wiping her tears. "Why does he hate me so much? I don't understand what I did. How could he become a different person so suddenly?" she sobs, letting her tears fall into the pillow she's resting on.

.

Eric laughs bitterly. "I've been asking myself those same three question, Jackie, and I still couldn't give you an answer."

.

Jackie sits up to face her friend. "Donna doesn't hate you. She loves you so much. I think she's just angry that you left her again."

.

His brows knit "What do you mean again?" he asks.

.

"You left her at the altar and then you ran off to Africa. That's twice." she enumerates for him.

.

"She's mad I went to Africa?' he balks. "I went to Africa, so I'd be able to pay for college, so I could be with her!" he grouses angrily.

.

"Yeah, but Eric, when you had to stay home from college after Red's heart attack, she gave up her dream of going to hold your scrawny hand in the basement. She wanted to be with you" she insists.

.

"What was I supposed to do—not go?" he asks.

.

"Yes! You could've stayed home and worked, or gone part time. Or hey, here's an idea—you could have asked her to go with you to Africa. Why didn't you ask her?" she challenges.

.

He runs his hands through his hair as his brain whirls, trying to catch up. "I didn't think she'd go. I already kept her from college for a year and...God, I'm so stupid! Fuck!" he curses angrily. "Why do I always do this?"

.

She grabs his hands and looks deep into his emerald eyes. "It's not all your fault. You both screwed up, okay? She could have told you she wanted to go with you or demanded that you stay. She didn't do either. She just sat there passively while getting angry that you were trying to make something of yourself like...well, like Steven." she says, surprised at the parallels between the two relationships.

.

His eyes go soft as he realizes the commonality between them. "I'm sorry I wasn't there during the whole, um..."

.

"Skanky stripper episode?" she pipes in.

.

He laughs. "Yeah. That. Look, I know Hyde, probably better than anybody, and you were literally the only spot of happiness he's ever had in his life. I mean, I know he loves my family but they were never just his, not like you were" he explains.

.

Hearing this explanation only fills her with intense remorse. "And then I left him" she smiles sadly as she rides out her epiphany.

.

"Yeah, you did, but that doesn't excuse what he's been doing to you. You didn't deserve any of that. Hyde and Donna, the two of them are just so self-righteous! I guess Hyde conveniently forgets the time that he left you—when he cheated on you out of spite with that nurse. And I know for a fact Donna didn't lose too much sleep over running off to California or choosing Casey Kelso over me. Easy for her to forget, but not me."

.

"I guess they're the only ones allowed to mess up, huh?" she says facetiously.

.

"Also, you forgot that they're always right" he adds caustically.

.

She sits on her knees and looks up into his sour face. "Don't do that. Don't try to make yourself hate her like that. You still have a chance to work things out."

.

"I don't know about that. I'm sensing a pattern with us that I just do not like." he ruminates.

.

"I know what you mean" she sighs. "At least your pattern doesn't include getting repeatedly cheated on and publicly humiliated. They both did that to me, Michael and Steven. And I was so scared of being alone that I just let them" she confesses.

.

"Why are you scared of being alone? You're beautiful, Jackie. It's not like you'd ever be alone for long" he wonders.

.

Fresh tears well in her eyes. "You don't understand, because you have people who love you no matter what. I've never had that and I wanted it so badly. And I thought I did have it, but it turns out I was wrong. I guess I'm just like Steven said—a desperate loser who will latch onto anybody just to be loved" she weeps into her hands.

.

Eric's body burns hot with anger as he watches his once bright-eyed pixie fall apart in front of him. "He's such an asshole! You're not desperate for wanting love, he wants it too, but he's just too chickenshit to admit it. He's just picking on you for having the balls to do what he can't."  
.

Jackie emerges from behind her hands and smiles weakly. "Thank you" she whispers. "It's been a really long time since anybody's been kind to me. Fez tried, but he had somebody pulling his strings half the time. Guess Steven wanted me to have nobody, so I could be just like him" she muses.

.

"You're not like him" he promises as he runs his thumbs down the sides of her face to wipe her tears away. "You're special. There's something so alive and magnetic about you. Even when you're being a pain in the ass, you're always fascinating. To me, at least."

.

As he strokes the side of her face, Jackie can feel her body stirring and is overwhelmed with confusion. Her heart is starting to race and her face begins to flush. She tries to convince herself that she's just having a bad reaction to the bud she smoked earlier, but she knows deep down it's really a good reaction to the man sitting directly in front of her.

.

Eric wonders what the fuck he's doing, but he can't seem to stop himself. She's so vulnerable and open, and he's never felt so needed or protective. Her face is perfection and her skin feels like velvet beneath his fingertips. He didn't come here for this, but she needs him so much and he just wants to make her feel better, he just wants...

.

Jackie looks directly into his eyes and his breath hitches. Her mismatched orbs seem almost iridescent under the glow of the moonlight and like a beacon, they seems to be calling him in - - closer and closer. This is wrong, he knows it's wrong but he also knows he wants it. He wants her badly.

.

She licks her lips as the distance between the two of them closes in. She just wants to feel good again, to feel wanted without being taken advantage of for one night. The way he looks at her with such kindness is an aphrodisiac, like a tall glass of water after coming through the other side of a desert. He doesn't think she's a loser, he thinks she's special. This is the worst thing that can happen right now, but she is powerless to make it stop.

.

He cups the sides of her face and hovers his mouth over her lips that are pink and swollen from crying. There's still time to stop it if he tries. "Jackie..." he whispers, but before he can finish the word, he's already lost control.

.

**A/N – I know. I'm a tease, but I promise the next chapter will start off with a smutty M rating (if I can bring myself to write a sex scene), so if J/E makes you want to hurl, then look away until you see the scene break line. If you love J/E then buckle up for chapter 8.**

**I'm the type that gets squeamish about J/E stories, but I figured that if I could write it believably enough that it didn't creep me out when I typed it, then it hopefully wouldn't gross my fellow Zennies out to read it. You'll have to let me know by leaving a * Review *! ****Here's hoping the J/E shippers are digging this.**

**.**

**Oh, and as I've mentioned before, they will all find their way back to the ones they're meant to be with, so do not let this worry you if you're a D/E & J/H luvah.**


	8. Chapter 8

**I've got some good news and some bad news and the way you take it depends on which ship you ride. If you're a Zennie, you'll be happy to know that this chapter remains at a T-rating, though you'll be sad to know that J/E will get it on at the top of the chapter. I just couldn't bring myself to go into graphic detail on this one. It's not because I don't love Eric, you know I do—but I want to see him 'go there' with Donna, not Jackie. I just...can't. However, rest assured, this is a sex scene and won't be like the Fez scenes I write where I will ALWAYS fade to black, because...I mean...come on. The dude hides in closets to watch his friends do it. I can't get on board writing smut for that guy. **

**.**

**Anyway, I promise some smut is coming—smut I'll be able to write without giggling. Hope this chapter isn't too off the wall. Oh, and thank you for all of the reviews, they perk me up and keep me on the straight and narrow : )**

**.**

**PS - sorry kayjay!**

**.**

**CHAPTER 8**

.

Jackie Burkhart isn't very used to failure. She's always excels at everything she puts her mind to- - -ballet, horseback riding, chess, all of it. If it can be taught then she can learn it. The one thing should could never manage to do well though, was love. In any form. Sure, she knew how to give it, and she always gave until it hurt, but that was her problem. She never saved any of it over for herself, and sadly, she's the one who needed her love the most.

.

As her ex-best friend's ex-boyfriend leans toward her, she can't help but be baffled at how she ended up here. If you had asked her a year ago—hell, if you'd asked her last week whether she could ever conceive of something like this ever happening, she would have laughed her ass off. Yet here she is, high as a kite in a Mexican hotel room waiting for Eric Forman to lay one on her and she still can't quite believe this is actually real.

.

"Jackie..." he whispers, but before he can finish the word, she finds herself lunging at him. She pulls his head towards hers and crashes her pillow-like lips onto his, hoping that inspiring his desire will make her feel better about herself. Her self-esteem has taken a huge hit over the past few months and a night of feeling wanted could be just the panacea she needs to jump-start her psyche.

.

His lips feel soft and slick against her own, different from Steven's of course, but nice all the same. She's not sure what she expected kissing him to be like, because he is the absolute last person in the world she would have ever predicted this happening with. And though there aren't any major fireworks going off in her body, she and Eric have a shared pain that cannot be denied, and somewhere in that connection burns a fire, fueled by desperation and need. So yeah, they won't writes songs about it, but this will still do quite nicely.

.

Their breathing is ragged from a mixture of fear and lust as they pull apart, both feeling shocked and guilty over when they've just done and what they're both about to do. It was just a kiss (okay, more like several) but there's still time to stop things before they go further.

.

"Jackie...he whispers again, not really knowing which words he'll choose to follow that up with. His mind is blank. Hyde always said Jackie made him stupid—Kelso was born stupid so it's hard to tell either way if she had that affect on him—but she's definitely making his own brain go fuzzy and out of focus.

.

He never got the appeal of her before, other than the obvious, but he sure as shit gets it now. She's not just the vain, irritating and shallow girl he bid goodbye to back in Point Place six months ago. She's that, but with an added layer beneath the surface if you bother to dig a little. She has intelligence, drive, a beguiling innocence to her and an ability to remain obstinately optimistic even in the face of certain failure. Jackie is Luke Skywalker before he learned to control 'the force'. Like Luke at the beginning of the movie, she has a world of potential in her, but she's totally oblivious to her own power. Until somebody wakes her up and ignites her, like Obi-wan did for Luke, she's only ever going to see herself as a lowly moisture farmer-no wait-a sexy moisture farmer.

.

He could be her Obi-wan. He could irnite that fire for her again and make her feel good, even if it's just for one night. It's not like it's a hardship, making love to an incredible beautiful woman. He's baked, she's gorgeous, Donna dumped him and he hasn't had sex in six months, why is he even debating this? Her light's been dimmed, but if anybody knows how to make a woman feel wanted and appreciated, it's Eric Forman.

.

"Yes?" she whispers back, unsure if he's calling out her name in disbelief or if he actually has something he needs to say.

.

"Are you sure about this? You're pretty high" he wonders cautiously, not wanting to add to her turmoil by taking advantage of her impaired state.

.

She nods and then lifts her shirt over her head and drops it to the floor.

.

He forgets to breathe as he tries to process what's happening in front of him. His mind is still blank as a slate, other than the realization that Hyde wasn't fucking kidding when he called her breasts magnificent. They were that and then some.

.

She leans forward and lifts his shirt off then runs both hands down the front of his chest, letting them settle on his belt buckle.

.

What. The. Fuck?

.

He pulls her towards him, pressing his bare chest against her own, winding his mouth down her slender and responsive neck.

.

The sudden movement and sensation makes her gasp. She hasn't felt like this in so long, hasn't known physical pleasure or even human contact on this level in months and she's been missing it like a lost puppy.

.

"Oh...my...God. What are we doing? What are we doing?" she rambles under her breath over and over before attacking his mouth again with her own. The sadness, the wrongness, and especially the pot are heightening the sensations flowing through her body and she wants this. This is freaking happening.

.

He gently pushes her backwards onto the bed and unbuckles his jeans. She slips off her skirt and throws it to the floor. As she closes her eyes for a moment, she consciously tries to block out the fact that this is Eric—_Donna's _Eric, hovering over her naked body, leering at her like the last steak at a buffet table. She tells herself to pretend he's somebody else, a stranger, anybody else—he could be a traveling vacuum salesman named Julio or a plumber named Frank. She looks back into his eyes, the intense green of his irises, red-rimmed from pot, only look bolder in the dark. Jesus, let this be anybody but Eric.

.

She shuts her eyes again and is met with Steven's smiling face leaning over her as he tickles her with the end of a paintbrush he stole from art class. She's blindfolded and he teases her mercilessly with the end of that thing and has all afternoon. She hates the way the brush feels but loves the man wielding it.

.

Her lids flip open and she's back in Mexico, watching Eric slide her lavender cotton panties down her legs. Nerves taking over, she begins to pant from fear...or is that desire...or both? This isn't real. That's not Eric and this whole thing is a Mary Jane-induced hallucination or a concussion haze. Her breathing reaches a fevered pitch as she helplessly watches his head sink down between her knees. She grabs handfuls of her own hair and covers her eyes with it. She's dizzy with panic, worried about how this will affect their friendship, how this will affect his friendship with Steven if it ever comes out, and Donna! Oh God, maybe she doesn't really hate Donna as much as she did a few days ago and then...silence. All of the chatter stops and pleasure takes over in it's place, silencing for good the nosy Greek chorus yelling at her inside of her head.

.

The last thing she hears as her muscles begin to clench and shake is the shifting of a paint brush and sound of Steven's laughter ringing in her ears.

.

* * *

.

Kitty is sitting at the kitchen table nursing a glass of Pinot Grigio. Donna slides open the glass door and sits quietly next to her, barely expecting to be acknowledged.

.

This is how the last few days have been. They sit there together in silence and wait for a call that never comes. Sometimes she reads one of her self-help books for distraction, but most of the time she stares at the same spot on the wall as Kitty and thinks about Eric and what she plans to say when she sees him again.

.

Red walks in from the living room and looks sadly at his wife. "Kitty, it's 9am. I know you're worried, but drinking this early is only going to make you sleepy."

.

"Good, because I haven't been able to sleep more than an hour at a time since my baby left" she says, devoid of any emotion, having drained herself of it all in the first 24 hours.

.

Red's face falls as he walks over to his wife's chair and wraps his arms around her shoulders. "He's okay Kitty. He's just being a dumbass, but I know he's safe" he assures her.

.

"I don't understand it. I thought I was a good mom, I tried. First Laurie..." she stops, unable to talk about her runaway daughter, "and now Eric. I never thought he'd ever leave me like this. What did I do wrong, Red?" she asks, looking down into her wine glass.

.

Donna pushes down the lump building in her throat and takes a breath. "You didn't do anything, Mrs. Forman, it was me" she confesses with sorrow. "We had a fight that night, and he left because of me."

.

Kitty looks at the redhead angrily, pursing her lips like she's about to say something, but then feels Red's warm grip on her shoulders and turns her glare back to her wine glass.

.

"I'm sorry" Donna whispers.

.

The phone rings suddenly and Red leaves his wife's side to answer it. "Forman residence" he says after he lifts up the receiver. He shrugs his shoulders at the ladies and waits for a response. "Hello? Is anybody there?"

.

The silence on the other end of the line is deafening.

.

"If this is Eric, please say something. Your mother is worried sick about you" he utters gruffly, as Kitty gives him a disapproving eye. "I am too" he confesses quietly into the device. "You don't have to tell us where you are, just let us know you're doing alright. Please" he urges.

.

After another few seconds, he decides to speak up. "It's me" Eric admits.

.

Red's eyes go wide as he excitedly gestures to his wife that it's Eric. Kitty braces her heart with her hand and scurries over to listen in on the call. Donna moves her chair closer and listens intently while biting her nails nervously.

.

"Are you okay son? Are you safe? Is Jackie? Do you need help?" he asks his boy.

.

"We're both safe. We're okay. Just taking a little time to figure out what's next, you know?" he explains, knowing full well his father won't understand or approve of anything he's doing.

.

"Can you tell me where you are?" he prods, hoping to get some more details for his wife.

.

Eric, clad in a pair of boxers and a worn out t-shirt, looks over at the sleeping form next to him and then back at the phone. "In Tampico".

.

"Tampico? Where the hell is that?" he wonders.

.

"It's um...we're in Mexico, on the Atlantic coast" he specifies.

.

Red holds the receiver away from his face and looks at it like it just insulted his mother. Knowing what usually comes next, Kitty grabs the phone from Red's hand hand and places it to her ear. "Honey? Eric, it's your mother" she informs him, as if he could ever forget her voice.

.

"Hi mom" he says shamefully, knowing the kind of hell he's been putting her through by not calling until now. "I'm so sorry, mom. I know you're all probably really pissed at me right now and I'm actually kind of surprised that nobody has hung the phone up on me yet—pleasantly surprised—not gross surprised, like when you step on a piece of chewed gum" he rambles nervously, for lack of a better option..

.

Kitty starts crying.

.

"Aww, no mom. Please don't cry. I'm sorry. I really am!" he insists.

.

"Oh Eric. I'm crying because I'm happy! And relieved! I thought something might have happened to my baby boy" she sniffles. "Please, please come home. I promise I won't be mad. I'll make your favorite brownies, and I'll even make sure your dad keeps his foot planted firmly on the floor and nowhere near your ass. Okay?" she pleads.

.

"Okay mom" he smiles. "But it's going to take a while to get back. I'll call you every day so you're not worried" he promises.

.

"Eric? How's Jackie doing?" she asks with a tinge of sadness in her voice.

.

He glances at the woman in question for a moment and is lulled for a moment by the rise and fall of her rhythmic breathing. "Not great, to be honest."

.

Kitty expression turns pained. "Do you think...would she want me to call Pam for her?"

.

Eric stifles an ironic laugh. "No, I don't think that will be necessary."

.

"Oh. Well, give her a kiss from us okay? Red is very concerned about her. Oh, and tell her if she wants to talk to somebody, my door is always open" she sighs. "Poor girl has no one" she frowns.

.

Donna apprehensively approaches Kitty and signals that she'd like to talk to Eric.

.

"Honey—one thing. Donna is here and she'd like to talk to you" she tells him.

.

Eric's chest tightens at the prospect of chatting with his ex, especially after he just spent the night fucking the shit out of her best friend. He's twitchy enough when he's not hiding something, and he can't really chance exposing himself—or Jackie for that matter—to any scrutiny from the basement peanut gallery.

.

"Tell her I'm sorry, but I just can't right now" he says quickly. "Mom, I love you, but I've really gotta go. I'll call soon, I promise. Bye!" he hangs up the phone in haste.

.

"I—I'm sorry Donna, but he had to go" she breaks it to her with empathy.

.

Donna nods. "I'm glad they're okay" she smiles weakly and lets herself out of the house through the slider door, waiting for the door to fully click shut before completely breaking down in tears.

.

* * *

.

The sound of Eric slamming down the receiver rouses Jackie from her deep slumber. For a blissful moment, she's unaware of where she is or who she's with, but reality sets in quickly as she shifts her eyes nervously up toward Eric and pulls the bed sheet tightly around her body.

.

"Good morning" he says hesitantly, halfway between a greeting and a question.

.

"Good morning" she responds quietly as she surveys the room for details, trying to piece together what exactly went down the night before.

.

He perches himself on the windowsill nearest to the bed. "I was just on with my parents, if you were wondering who that was" he twitches.

.

"You finally called them" she confirms, sounding impressed. "I thought I was going to have to do it myself" she sighs as she leans over to check for her clothes under the bed.

.

"They asked about you, wanted to make sure you were okay," he informs her as he awkwardly hands her the bra and pair of underwear he retrieved from the area around his feet.

.

He averts his gaze as she covertly attempts to dress herself. "Am I?" she asks, curious for his assessment as she fastens the bra. "Okay?"

.

He cocks his head to the right and looks at her intently. "You know I couldn't definitely say, because I have no baseline for comparison really. To me, you've always seemed a little batshit crazy."

.

She lets out a muted puff of laughter and shakes her head. "You're probably on to something there."

.

"My mom said you should call her if you want to talk. And Red is worried about you" he relays the information.

.

She smiles, feeling relieved that there are at least two people in the world who still care about her well-being.

.

"So..." he starts with a loaded pause.

.

"Yeah" she exhales.

.

"You want to talk about last night" he offers, not really wanting to go there yet.

.

"Would you mind terribly if we didn't?" she asks sweetly.

.

"Oh thank God" he breathes relief. "I was really worried you'd want to talk, because we all know how you love to talk, and then you'd probably go on about Hyde and Donna and get upset, and it would turn into this whole big thing..." he babbles away, as twitchy as ever.

.

"Hey! Calm down there for a minute, Gilligan. We did nothing wrong, okay? My ex-boyfriend is a verbally abusive asshole who doesn't deserve my loyalty, and the last thing I heard Donna say in reference to me included the words "desperate" and "shame spiral", so I'm not feeling too concerned with her feelings at the moment. I mean, she screamed at you and told you that she's moved on, so it not like you're cheating on her" she explains.

.

"You've thought a lot about this" he notes, mildly amused.

.

"It took me a few hours to fall asleep last night, you know, after..." she looks away.

.

"After 'Logan's Run'? Yeah, that movie freaked me out a little as well" he deadpans.

.

She rolls her eyes. "Want to go swimming?"

.

"Nice segue" he jokes.

.

"Come on loser, lets go get ourselves tan and pretend last night never happened" she smiles as she walks toward the bathroom in just her bra and underwear.

.

His face contorts—he can't decide whether he's pleased or offended that she wants to forget about their encounter. "Jackie-?"

.

She turns around.

.

"You don't, um...you don't regret it right? I don't want to be another one of your regrets" he says softly, "...you have enough."

.

She walks back over to Eric and brushes her lips gently against his. "Just because I want to pretend something never happened, doesn't mean I regret it, okay? You were being a good friend to me when I needed one most, but now I want to be a good friend to you by never mentioning last night again" she explains. "You'll never get anywhere with Donna otherwise".

.

He looks down. "I don't know if I want to get anywhere with her, to be honest. Not this Donna, at least".

.

She places a hand on his shoulder. "She's your soul mate, Eric. Maybe you both lost your way a little but you'll find your way back. You always do." she smiles.

.

"What about you and Hyde?" he asks.

.

Her face darkens. "You know, when I think about Steven, it reminds me of a chat I had with my neighbor Malcolm Trainor, who lost his foot one day while he was mowing the lawn, which is like, so gross. After month of avoiding him, my mom made me bring over a basket of fruit to him."

.

"Pam doesn't seem like the fruit basket type" he remarks.

.

"We don't bake" she shrugs. "Anyway, when I got to his house, I couldn't stop staring at it, you know, where his foot used to be. And I just randomly asked him if it still hurt, which admittedly is kind of a dumb question to ask an amputee. He told me that he actually does feel things sometimes. Often he forgets he's even missing the foot at all yet he feels pain like it's really happening-even though it's impossible because that foot doesn't exist anymore. I guess since his foot has been a part of him for so long, his body is tricked into thinking his foot is still there, even though his brain knows it's not. He calls it his phantom limb. I guess what I'm saying is that's kind of what Steven is like to me now. He's my phantom limb" she bites her bottom lip to keep her emotions in check.

.

A loud knock on the outside of their hotel room door startles them both.

.

* * *

.

Kitty is cooking breakfast in the kitchen now and humming away. Red admires her from his seat, relieved that his wife is happy again and back to her strange, albeit normal self.

.

Hyde ambles up the stairs, already dressed for work and raring to go. "Morning Mrs. Forman" he says as he crosses the room to give her a kiss on the cheek. Since Eric's been gone, Hyde's been putting aside his normal temperament to give her the son experience she's been craving so desperately. If she can act like a good mom to him, he can play the dutiful son to her. He owes her that much.

.

Upon seeing his face, Kitty screams, startled by what she's just seen. "Oh Steven! Oh Steven you finally did it!" she squeals, jumping up and down in place.

.

Red pulls the newspaper he's reading down from his face and lets out an exasperated sigh. "What'd the kid do wrong now?"

.

Hyde looks at his father figure and smirks.

.

"So, you finally decided to shave off the old 'stache. Glad to see you finally saw the light with that one, though it took you long enough" he grumbles. "What made you finally do it? Get chased down by an Indian, a cop and a construction worker?" he grins condescendingly.

.

"Ooh, that reminds me, are Kelso and Fez coming over this morning?" Kitty asks.

.

Hyde plants himself in his assigned chair. "Not sure about Fez, but Kelso and Brooke left for Chicago really early—oh, and they want you to call them if there's any news" he informs her as he reaches for a few slices of bacon.

.

Kitty is vibrating with excitement and shuffles over to the table. "Ask-Me-What-I-Know!" she demands in her usually overwrought staccato, while flailing around her balled up her fists around to keep from levitating.

.

He smiles at her change in mood, She's been so sad since Eric and Jackie left that he thought he wouldn't see her like this again until...his eyes grow wide and he raises out of his seat. "Are they back?"

.

He excitement dwindles a bit. "No Steven, they're not back yet, but Eric called here not too long ago."

.

Hyde runs his hand over his mouth a few times and sinks back down into the chair. "Is he...uh...okay?" he asks without emotion as he intensely fixes his gaze on his breakfast plate.

.

Kitty frowns lightly, knowing her boy to be too scared to ask her what he really wants to know. "Eric is good" she says. "He's in Mexico."

.

He nods solemnly. "Yeah, I kind of figured that much out on my own. Do you know where?"

.

"Tampico. I think he said it was on the Atlantic side" she tells him.

.

A series of emotions march across his face: first relief, then fear, then anger, and finally shame sets in.

.

"You're sure he's fine?" he questions her again with more urgency in his voice, hoping to get a more detailed, Jackie-inclusive answer this time.

.

"You want to ask me about Jackie" she informs him.

.

He shrugs. "Her? I don't care about-" he looks up at Kitty with exposed eyes and realizes the jig is up. He licks his lips then he pinches his eyes closed to avoid her penetrating stare. He nods. "Yeah".

.

Kitty sits next to him at the table and places one hand over his. "She's not too well, actually. Eric knows how worried I get about you all, so if he's saying she's not doing well, then I've got to admit that it makes me pretty worried."

.

Hyde takes a couple deep breaths to keep himself together. "May I be excused please?" he asks, still unable to look at her.

.

Kitty hugs her little orphan boy tightly. "Yes. Just promise me you'll eat a little something when you get to work".

.

He nods then walks away from the table and heads down into the basement.

.

**A/N – Whew. These chapters are really getting harder for me to write. I'm trying to keep things moving as quickly as I can. After the next chapter or two there will probably be a time jump a few years into the future.**

**.**

**Well, was it awful? Are you skeeved out or excited? I'm really nervous about how this one came out. I'm fully aware that Jackie sounds schizophrenic in regards to both Donna and Hyde in this, but she's very conflicted, so you'll have to excuse her! Please let me know what you think by leaving a review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**I knew the sex scene in the last chapter was going to cause a ruckus! Okay, you know I'm a zennie, so I had to go light on the graphic stuff. The sex scene between J/E is meant to be less about lust and more about making each other feel better. **

**.**

**I know the J/E people were upset I had her thinking of Hyde during the act, but since she's still in love with him and this is the first person she's having sex with since Hyde AND he's Hyde's best friend, I felt it was natural for her to drift off for a it and think of him when things starting getting really dirty. Eric is attracted to Jackie and is starting to appreciate her and see her the way the other three boys do, but he still is in love with Donna, which brings me to...**

**.**

**One of the guest reviewers had an excellent comment about how I haven't shown much of Eric's thoughts about Donna. This is true, but my plan was always to show the J/E interaction first, have him help her, and then have Jackie help Eric sort out what's going on in his head. This is the chapter where you'll start to learn more about how Eric feels about Donna. Hopefully, she's becoming less bitchy and slowly turning into the old Donna. I'm trying! Okay, I'll shut up now. Here we go...**

.

**CHAPTER 9**

.

Donna is sitting on her therapist's couch Indian-style, slightly rocking back and forth. "What are you writing?" she asks, self-consciously.

.

"I'm just taking notes so I remember which questions I want to ask you" Jennifer says.

.

"How do you determine what you want to ask me?" she wonders.

.

"Therapists try to ask questions that trigger thought. Like, for example, you mentioned the first time you came that your mother used to be a patient here" she starts.

.

Donna groans. "I knew you'd find a way to bring my mother into this".

.

"Why do you think your mother went to get therapy?" she asks.

.

"Therapy was just the tip of the iceberg with her, so it's more of a 'why not?' than a why, if you know what I mean" she divulges.

.

"What else was your mother trying?" Jennifer prods.

.

Donna takes a deep breath. "I mean, it's just hard, right, because I don't even know you and you want me to tell you the deepest darkest secrets about my life. Like, how does one tell a perfect stranger that my parents used to hold nudist events and key parties and that they brought other people into their bed while I was home? My dad's a simple guy. It's not his fault, he tried hard and did some really distasteful shit to keep my mom interested and he just...wasn't enough for her, so she left."

.

"Sounds like you feel a lot of resentment toward your mom" she empathizes.

.

The redhead laughs and pulls her hair back into a ponytail that she never secures. "Ya think?" Her laughing tapers off. "I think I get the question thing now. Very clever."

.

"Donna, you told me why your mom came here. Why are you here?" she questions.

.

She thinks for a moment. "I guess I'm here because I don't want to turn into her."

.

"Why do you think there's a chance of that happening?" Jennifer wonders.

.

"I think my dad wasn't what was really making my mom unhappy. I think she tried all of these things to stop whatever was that was going on in her head, making her so unhappy" she muses.

.

"And what do think was making her unhappy?" she asks.

.

"I'm pretty sure my mom was a depressive. Clinically. I think she ruined her family because she didn't know why she was sad or how to stop it" she guesses.

.

"So why do you think you're turning into her then?" she questions.

.

Donna swallows hard then looks at the doctor with tears forming in her eyes. "I'm a depressive too".

.

* * *

.

Eric and Jackie are lying down on the beach sunbathing.

.

"Why don't you ever want to go in the water?" he asks.

.

"Oh no. I don't like the surf. Too salty. It's bad for the hair" she informs him.

.

"But I saw you sitting on the shoreline earlier and you didn't care when your hair got wet then" he says with an accusatory look.

.

"Look Eric, can we drop it?" she asks tersely.

.

He looks at her strangely for a moment before a big grin breaks out across his face. "Jackie Burkhart can't swim."

.

"Don't be ridiculous. Of course I can" she grumbles.

.

"You know Jackie, you don't have to worry about drowning. According to The Life of Brian, witches can float" he smirks.

.

"Get bent, will you?" she frowns.

.

"Seriously, what's up?" he questions.

.

She looks at him for a moment then breaks. "Fine. I can swim in a pool, but I'm afraid of swimming in the surf".

.

He puts his hand across his heart. "Aww. Don't be scared little one. I'll take you swimming."

.

She smiles at him, unable to stay as irritated as she wants to. "My dad used to take me when I was little and then he just stopped. I haven't really done it since."

.

She looks small and helpless to him now. Not at all the girl he used to know in the basement who had bravado and swagger. What the hell did Hyde do to her while he was in Africa?

.

"Jackie, you're going to face your fears today. Like Frodo Baggins, Luke Skywalker and Ellen Ripley before you, you're going to face the monster-which in your case is a 10 foot wave" he announces.

.

"I'm impressed that you managed to squeeze three nerd references into one sentence. Trifecta! Better pace yourself" she jokes.

.

"And I'm impressed that you _got _all three of my nerd references, you closet nerd" he smirks. "Now stop trying to weasel out of it by distracting me".

.

"What do I get if I do this?" she asks.

.

"The satisfaction of knowing you've conquered your fears" he states grandly with an arm flourish.

.

She looks at him unimpressed.

.

"Okay fine, what do you want? Candy? Something shiny? A tiny bikini—okay that one's more for me" he jokes.

.

"I want you to get real with me about Donna" she demands.

.

"Jackie, I don't want to talk about it, okay? I'm trying to have fun here" he complains.

.

"Why did you sleep with me last night?" she asks, point blank.

.

Eric lowers his voice to sound sexy. "Have you seen yourself naked, Jackie? Because I have, and if you-"

.

"Cut the crap, Forman!" she yells. "I want the real truth about Donna and what's bothering you, and then I'll go out into the scary freaking water with you, okay?"

.

"Why do even care?" he wonders sincerely without malice.

.

"I know we're not, like, in love or anything, but...I don't know. I guess I love you in that other way" she confesses honestly. "You helped me through one of the toughest 48 hours of my life and I just, well, I want to do the same for you" she tells him.

.

"I'm good. Honestly. I don't need help" he smiles, unconvincingly.

.

"You left your parent's house a few hours after you got back from a six month trip to Africa. You are in Mexico, with a chick you have hated until now-" she rants.

.

"I never hated you, Jackie" he insists.

.

"Fine. ...with a chick you _didn't _date until now, and then you fucked your girlfriend's best friend. To me, that suggests a cry for help" she finishes.

.

"First of all, Donna is not my girlfriend. Second of all, I didn't fuck you, we had sex. Fucking is for people who don't like each other very much. Third of all, you're clearly not best friends with her anymore. And I left home because...you know what? I don't give a shit if you go into the water Jackie. Do what you want" he snaps and rolls over to face away from her.

.

* * *

.

Angie pulls into the Formans' driveway in an orange MGB convertible and honks twice.

.

Hyde wanders out from the kitchen and sees his sister in her new ride. "Hell yeah!"

.

She giggles, pacing through a variety of 'cool' poses.

.

"Stop. You're ruining it" Hyde makes a disgusted face.

.

"Whatever. You're just jealous, joker!" she cackles.

.

"God, you remind me of Jackie right now" he says under his breath as he smiles to himself.

.

"What'd you say?" she asks.

.

"Nothing" he answers quickly.

.

"Did you just say I'm like _Jackie_?" she strains her face from thinking so hard.

.

"Gimme your keys" he demands.

.

"No friggin' way, sir. You're gonna have to pry them out of my cold, dead hands" she taunts.

.

He cocks his head to the side. "That can be arranged" he says as he leaps into the passenger's seat and tickles his sister mercilessly until she drops the keys.

.

He holds them up "Now you're going to see what this baby is really capable of" he grins.

.

Donna pulls up behind them in her car and gets out. "Holy crap! I think I've died and gone to heaven!"

.

"It's cool, right? Angie asks.

.

"Fuck yeah it's cool!" she exclaims.

.

"Too cool for you" Hyde grumbles.

.

"Aww, what the matter Hyde? Daddy didn't buy you one too?" she taunts.

.

"My car is sweeter than this, you lumberjack" he snaps before realizes what he's just said.

.

"Did you just call me a lumberjack?" she looks at him with curiosity.

.

He balks. "Eh...no".

.

Angie looks at him strangely. "Yes you did".

.

"Shut up, Angie" he grunts.

.

"He did, right?" she confirms.

.

"I heard it" Angie smiles.

.

Donna scratches her head. "Hmm, who was the only person who used to call me that? Who was it? I just can't remember, can you Hyde?"

.

"Cut it out, Donna" he says seriously.

.

"I will if you tell me what you're gonna do about her" she offers.

.

Hyde tosses Angie's keys into her front seat and jumps out of the car. "Catch you later, sis" he says as he walks into the house.

.

Angie looks at the redhead and sighs. "Why did you do that? You know he's really sensitive about her."

.

Donna looks down at the pavement and feels a pang of guilt. "I don't know".

.

"Now who's going to drive with me to Chicago?" she whines.

.

Donna holds up a finger. "Let me go talk to him. Hang out here for a few minutes."

.

Angie nods and slumps into her new car to sunbathe.

.

* * *

.

Donna runs down the basement stairs and finds Hyde opening a beer. "Go away".

.

Donna's face constricts. "Hyde, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to-"

.

"What part of 'go away' is confusing to you? Jeez. I thought when you dyed your hair back you might get smarter" he huffs.

.

She hesitates for a moment before deciding what to do. "I'm not leaving".

.

Hyde groans. "Oh good God, you're as bad as..." he loses his train of thought.

.

"As bad as Jackie?" she wonders as she grabs herself a beer.

.

Hyde shakes his head and sits on the couch. "What do you want me to say? That I miss her? Fine. I do. It doesn't matter though, because she thinks I'm the plague".

.

"She might not" Donna weakly suggests.

.

"Do you know what she said to me at the party, when we had our fight?" he asks. "She told me that Edna had the right idea about me" he closes his eyes, reliving the moment, letting the self-revulsion envelop him like a thick blanket in the summertime.

.

Donna winces. "She said that? That doesn't sound like something Jackie would say."

.

"Exactly, man" he points to her for emphasis. "Kelso wasn't joking when he said we messed her up, except he was wrong about one thing. He didn't mess her up, I did."

.

"What do you mean? You think you broke her or something?" she asks.

.

Hyde nods and takes a swig of his beer. "I know I did".

.

Donna slumps into the other side of the couch. "What do you think they're doing together?"

.

Hyde shrugs. "Your guess is as good as mine".

.

"I think" she takes a breath, "I have a bad feeling about the two of them".

.

"She wouldn't do that" he answers definitively. "She's not like that".

.

"No, she wasn't like that before, but you broke her, remember?" she nudges.

.

Hyde's blood runs cold for a moment until he shakes it off. "No".

.

"Just because you don't want it to be true doesn't mean it isn't" she says philosophically. "Fez was right, you know. Neither of them has had sex in six months. They're both feeling sad and vulnerable, and they hate the two of us right now, so what's to stop them?"

.

"She wouldn't, okay? She could've had sex with Fez and she didn't, so why would she fuck Forman?" he rants.

.

"You know the answer to that, and there are many" she says ruefully.

.

"Look, I don't care if she is fucking Forman. Good for him, she's just a slut who knows her way around a mattress" he spits.

.

Donna slaps the beer out of his hand. "Listen to yourself! You love her, Hyde. You can deny it all you want but the world knows. Everybody around you knows. Stop acting like a dillhole and man up" she yells.

.

"I don't know how to stop" he admits quietly as he picks the can up off the ground.

.

"How to stop loving her or how to stop being an asshole?" she asks.

.

He looks up at her with shaded eyes. "Both".

.

* * *

.

Jackie glares at Eric for a moment and realizes she's not going to get a response. He went out on a limb for her when he rescued her from the party from hell, and she's going to do the same for him now. She strips off her sarong, shoes and hat and walks bravely toward the water.

.

Eric notices her swish past him but he does not look up.

.

I think I can. I think I can. I think I can. Jackie can't believe how handy she always finds that book. She likes to read it to Betsy at bedtime when she's in town, but she suspects it's more for her own sake than for the little girl's.

.

Eric notices Jackie as she begins to step into the surf. "Hey! Jackie! What the hell are you doing?" he screams.

.

"I"m going swimming!" she screams back as she continues her nausea-inducing trip into the water. She tells herself to close her eyes—no wait, should she have them open? Damn.

.

Eric pulls off his shoes and runs after her.

.

Salt water sprays her face and she isn't sure if it's from the waves or if it's from the tears falling out of her eyes. Just as she's about to take the last step off the shallow sandbank into to deeper ocean floor, an arms shoots out and encircles her waist.

.

She turns around to find Eric holding onto her. "God you are a pain in the ass. It would honestly take a big asshole like Hyde to keep you in line" he grouses. "Do you ever do what you're supposed to do?"

.

Jackie laughs. "Not really, but I'm predictable in my unpredictability" she declares.

.

"So, why'd you want me out here, huh?" he looks pointedly at her.

.

"I figured if I held up my end of the bargain, you'd have to hold up yours" she says.

.

He laughs. "Oh man. Jackie, I never agreed to that bargain" he responds gently.

.

Showtime- she thinks to herself. Her bottom lips pouts outward and her eyes grow big and sad. "Please Eric? Hold up your end of the bargain. Pleaseeee?"

.

He tries to resist but he can't. "Fuck! Okay fine. Okay, I'll tell you, but then you're going to have to do something disgusting like flash me".

.

"You're a pig, Eric, you know that?" she asks angrily.

.

"Yeah well, I'm a horny 20 year old guy and you're hot, so sue me" he shrugs.

.

"Fine. I'll flash you, but I'm going to call you Fez for the rest of the day" she threatens.

.

He looks at her chest through the bathing suit. "Worth it".

.

"Why did you leave home with me right after you got back, and don't tell me it was because of Donna, because I'll know you're full of shit?" she says.

.

"I don't know what I want to do with my life" he admits. "I think I might be having a smidge of a nervous breakdown. I figured Mexico would be as good of an escape as any" he confesses.

.

"I thought you wanted to teach" she asks him.

.

"I did. I probably do still. I just...I don't know. I feel like my life is going by so quickly and it's so out of my control, you know? I had all of these dreams when I was a kid and now that I'm older I realize probably none of them are going to happen for me. They teach you to dream, but they never teach you what to do when you don't get there, which most of us never do" he breathes heavily from treading water with a 95lbs weight in his arms.

.

"That's pretty deep" she frowns.

.

"Yeah, I'm afraid it's not all that exciting. I caught a flash of what my life might look like in 20 years and it scared the shit out of me. Then I realized that I'd never be able to achieve anything else and that freaked me out even more" he babbles on.

.

"Why don't you just change your dream?" she asks, finding this to be the most obvious answer. "Why does it have to be one or the other? Can't you just pick a third option?"

.

Eric laughs. "God Jackie. I like it. A simple answer to an age old question".

.

"I feel like you're speaking in riddles" she gripes.

.

"I'm saying you're a genius." he smiles.

.

"Oh. Well duh! Everybody knows that." she smiles back. "Now let me solve your Donna problem. I'm on a roll."

.

"Why do you care so much about this?" he wonders.

.

"I don't know. I guess I always thought you were perfect together. If you guys can't work it out, what chance do the rest of us have? I mean, I'm not perfect with anybody" she says sadly.

.

Eric laughs. "You don't really believe that, do you?" he challenges.

.

"You know I do" she tells him.

.

"Donna and I aren't perfect, okay? We're just as fucked up as you and Hyde, only more rational and not as sexy" he claims. "Nobody is perfect for anybody. Even my parents have to work hard at their marriage and they're like a pair of old shoes" he says, exhausted.

.

"What's the big secret with her, huh?" she pushes.

.

He looks out into the surf and decides whether to betray Donna's confidence. "Do you promise not to say anything? And before you say yes, I don't want you to promise the way you promised not to tell Donna I hated the Man Ring or how you promised not to tell Kelso about me seeing you kiss the Cheese Guy," he says. "I want a real promise".

.

"I promise in the way that I will never tell a living soul what happened in our hotel room last night" she says, looking straight into his eyes.

.

He nods. "Okay. Donna is depressed" he tells her.

.

"What's bothering her?" she wonders.

.

"Everything. Or nothing. I don't know. She's just sad a lot and she doesn't always have a reason. I used to be able to work around it more, but it got to a point that I just...I don't know. I love her, but I don't know if I'm strong enough to be with her. Not unless she does something about it" he explains.

.

Jackie's brow furrows. "Do you think this is why she was so weird when you were gone? She wasn't herself at all" she confides.

.

"Yes" he guesses.

.

"Is this why you left her at the altar?" she investigates.

.

A wave of shame washes over Eric along with the surf and he nods. "It's me. I'm just not enough for her. She needs somebody who can help her, and clearly I'm not capable" he says hanging his head. "It feels like I'm living on a roller coaster and I can't get off."

.

"I can relate to that" she laughs. "Look, as the daughter of an alcoholic, I can tell you that there's nothing you can do for her unless she wants help. It's not you, Eric. She has to come to it on her own." she says.

.

"You remember how she was when Midge left, right? Those were the longest months of my life. And the whole promise ring incident and Casey Kelso and running away to California. She's just always pushing me away. I love her more than anything Jackie and I just can't watch her go through it again. It's too hard for me. If you'd seen her fighting with me on New Year's, so hostile...I've never seen her that bad before" he admits. "It scared me".

.

"Did you think sleeping with me would end it with her without you having to make the choice to do it yourself?" she looks away from him. "Were you using me?"

.

Eric thinks hard and turns her face toward his. "I didn't realize it at the time. It wasn't all because of that. Weren't you using me?"

.

Jackie throws her arms around Eric and brushes her lips against his. "Yes and no. I needed somebody to make me feel better, but you're the only one I would've done this with. I know that now."

.

"What's going to happen now?" he asks her.

.

"You're going to teach me to swim in the ocean" she says as she grabs his hand and he wades them out into the middle of the water.

.

"Are we far enough for you yet?" he tries to gauge.

.

"Oh my God I'm freaking out" she pants.

.

"You're okay. I've got you" he assures her.

.

"Don't you dare let go of my hand!" she yells.

.

"I won't let go until you're ready. You can do this" he insists.

,

"No, Eric please. I don't think I can" she starts to cry.

.

"Hey—look at me." he says pointing to his eyes. "I'm right here watching and I will grab you if you get farther than arms length. I promise."

.

She cries and shakes her head.

.

"Don't you trust me?" he asks her.

.

She looks at him and nods.

.

"Just five seconds and you're done. You've got this okay?" he bolsters her.

.

She nods while breathing in and out deeply to calm herself down.

.

"Ready? I'm going to let go now" he releases her hand slowly but keeps it inches away from her. "Just tread water for five seconds. One-one thousand, two-one thousand three-one thousand, four-one thousand, five..."

.

"I'm doing it Eric! I can't believe I'm doing it! I am awesome!" she laughs giddily as she's pulled back into his arms.

.

"I knew you could do it! You want to go again?" he smiles at her.

.

"No fucking way!" she breathes, clinging harder to his neck.

.

"Okay. But it was a good first step, right? Like when Luke first used the bot for light saber practice. He couldn't control the force yet, but he was learning. Just like you, padawan" he touches her nose.

.

**A/N – Stick with me zennies and D/E lovers. It'll get there. Please review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**I think I'll be doing a time jump either during or after the next chapter, so look for it. **

**.**

**CHAPTER 10**

.

Donna enters the kitchen from the driveway while Kitty is baking in the kitchen.

.

Kitty looks up and notices her. "Hi Donna. Steven's not here right now, he's in Chicago today with his sister."

.

"I know" she says. "I actually came here to talk to you".

.

"Okay, then you're going to have to help me roll out and cut some cookies" she tells her.

.

Donna smiles and thinks how nice it is to do mom things with somebody, even if it's not her own mom. She remembers when Midge left the first time, how kind Kitty was to her, carving out special time in her busy day to spend with her.

.

She washes her hands and then stands next to Kitty. "What should I do?" she asks.

.

The older woman hands her a rolling pin. "Roll".

.

Donna starts to roll out the dough. It's hard to manipulate, but it smells great and pushing down the pin is meditative in a way and really seems to be getting out her tension. This is probably why Kitty bakes when she's upset. She always assumed it was just to keep her mind on other things.

.

"You said you wanted to speak to me?" Kitty prompts.

.

"Oh, right" the redhead says, snapping out of her reverie. "I, um, I wanted to apologize. About Eric."

.

"You don't have to apologize to me, honey. I mean, don't get me wrong, before he called I was ready to wring you neck," she laughs her usual staccato. "But I've spoken to Red about it and he pointed out the obvious to me" she explains.

.

"Which is?" she wonders.

.

"That our son is a dumbass" she smirks.

.

Donna laughs. "Come on".

.

"No. You know I was blaming you, when really I should've been blaming myself a little bit" she admits.

.

"Oh, no Kitty. None of this is your fault. You're an amazing mom." she assures her.

.

"So amazing that both of her children have run away from her" she slams the cookie cutter into the dough hard over and over again, slightly alarming Donna.

.

"No, you're probably the one thing Eric misses about Point Place" she tells her.

.

"You want to tell me about the fight you had?" Kitty pushes for details.

.

"I accused him of being a bad friend because he wasn't in the country when Hyde needed him" she discloses.

.

"Are you sure you were mad because of Hyde?" she prods.

.

Donna shakes her head. "No, I get it now. I was just pissed that he left me. Again. Why do you think he keeps leaving me, Kitty?"

.

Kitty puts the rolling pin down for a moment and looks at the girl. "He's not very confident. Thanks to his father" she says the last bit under her breath. "I think he wants to make himself into something, so that he can understand why you like him."

.

"Maybe I'm not affectionate enough to make him feel loved, but I do. I love him the way he is. He doesn't have to go away and 'become a man' to prove to people he's worthy of me" she rants angrily.

.

"I know that dear, but he's still a man and they like to feel confident" she explains.

.

"Sometimes I just don't get him, you know? I feel like things always have to be perfect for him or he doesn't want to do them at all. Like when he gave me the promise ring. It wasn't enough that I loved him or that I wore it around my neck, he wanted me to do things his way, and when I didn't he just cut me loose" she frowns.

.

"This is how men are, unfortunately. I remember Red's cousin Murray, who is a police officer. He was dating this lovely young woman for five years. She was desperate to get married, but he just wouldn't propose. He wanted to get a promotion first so he could provide for her, and be able to afford the perfect ring that she deserved and also a down-payment on a house. Years passed and none of those things materialized, and eventually his girlfriend left him" she says sadly.

.

"Really? Because he wasn't okay with not having a perfect life?" she questions.

.

"Yeah. That...and it turned out he liked men" she throws her hands up in the air. "Like we couldn't all see that one coming" she laughs hysterically.

.

"I worry that Eric will always be dissatisfied with his life. He's always chasing perfection and he's stubborn about settling for less" she tells her.

.

"Dissatisfaction is good, Donna. It means he still has the drive to do better. If he were easily pleased, he'd be like my Steven" she sighs sadly. "And we all know how aggressive he is at going after what he wants" she tuts.

.

"I guess I see your point" she nods.

.

"Eric is a sensitive boy. He needs a woman with a firm hand to guide him, which you have. Some men, like Steven and Red, need to be tricked into doing what's best for them. Others, like my baby, just need a gentle push in the right direction. I know you've had your problems, but you always inspired him to do the right thing," she confides. "He needs you".

.

Donna sighs sadly. "I'd like to think that, but he's in Mexico right now with Jackie" she says. "Probably falling in love".

.

"Now that's just...that's just malarkey and you know it. He's never had eyes for any girl but you." she asserts.

.

"I don't know. Jackie has half the town in love with her, why not Eric too?" she pouts.

.

Kitty's mouth forms a hard line. "Look, I don't know what's going on in Mexico, but I do know that Eric loves you and that Jackie loves Steven. If anything is, um, between them, it's for comfort and nothing else" she insists as she violently slams the cookie cutter into her sheet of dough.

.

"Maybe...but Eric really loves to give love and Jackie really loves to receive it. Maybe they're perfect for each other?" she theorizes sadly.

.

Kitty gives her a doubting look. "Jackie needs somebody like Steven to bring her back down to Earth, Eric would only feed the things about her we don't like" she laughs. "And Eric needs a girl who doesn't indulge him all the time. Jackie would just keep him a baby."

.

Donna cocks an eyebrow. "Are you saying Hyde likes being treated like a baby?"

.

"Well he's never been babied, Donna, so yes he enjoys it" she explains. "Oh, but don't tell him I said that!"

.

That's when it hits Donna how wrong she was to tell Hyde not to fight for Jackie. Kitty is right, he needs her, because she humanizes him. Without that little midget hammering away at his hard heart he wouldn't let anybody inside.

.

And Eric needs her, at least according to Kitty. She's not so sure about that, but she's absolutely sure she needs him.

.

Nobody makes her feel as safe and as loved as Eric, other than her dad. They've watched each other grow for nearly the last 15 years, and maybe it's possible that in order to grow up they had to grow apart, but that doesn't mean they can't go back. When she imagines her future, she never thinks of a specific town or building she might live in, she imagines a pair of kind green eyes smiling back at her, and a two warm-yet-bony arms wrapped tightly around her waist.

.

* * *

.

Hyde and Angie emerge from a booking agency office and head toward her new car.

.

"Heads up!" Angie yells as she tosses her brother the keys.

.

He catches them and looks at her with excitement. "Are you shitting me?"

.

"I am not" she says. "You did good in there. I think you deserve a joy ride." she smiles.

.

He grins like a small boy. "Thanks sis. This is pretty cool of you. I've never driven a convertible before".

.

"Who knows? If you do well at this job, maybe you'll be buying one of these for yourself in a year" she suggests as she hops into the passenger's seat.

.

"I've gotta admit. This whole making money thing doesn't suck" he remarks as he gets into the driver's seat. "Not one bit" he smiles as he pats the steering wheel.

.

"Ha. And you said _I_ sound like Jackie!" she teases. "Maybe the things you didn't like about her aren't so bad after all, you know-if she'd been into fancy cars instead of jewelry, maybe."

.

"Uh, I'm pretty sure she's into cars too" he says.

.

As he pulls the car out of the parking lot and on to the road, he realizes that Angie is right. As much as he's a big rebel who hates corporate America, he sure as shit likes what corporate America has to offer him—like this freaking car. It's easy to hate money when you have none and it doesn't require a lot to take a stand against the rich when you're broke. But if he had been brought up with money like Angie, would he have been so hostile toward those who have it? He's not so sure the answer is no.

.

This car is a game changer. It's a sickening feeling when you find out you're nothing but a hypocrite like the rest of the sheep, but liberating all the same. Hyde tells himself that this is just about growing up not selling out. That's what WB once told him. Too bad Jackie's not here, because she'd give him a 3rd degree burn with this little tidbit.

.

"What do you think?" she asks, referring to the ride.

.

"Uh, I think I'm a big fat fraud. And that I want this car" he responds.

.

"Well, since you're already a fraud, what do you think about joining the business with me. You know, full time?" she ventures.

.

Hyde pulls the car over to the shoulder of the road. "Are you kidding me?"

.

"Steven, I'm not. You know how to talk to these people better than I do. As you always remind me, I'm a huge square whose only language is geek" she asserts. "and Latin. I'm fluent in Latin" she smiles proudly.

.

He struggles with the offer. "I don't know Angie. I mean. I only have a high school education and the legal status of my graduation is questionable."

.

"You may not have an education, but can always learn things. You do, however, already know how to do things, like read people, convince them to do things, figure out what they want. Those are skills that can't be taught. Trust me, I've tried to learn them."

.

He looks at the steering wheel of the car and feels the buttery leather underneath his fingers. He doesn't really need stuff like this. It's nice, but it's not a necessity. He then realizes that it's not really the stuff he can buy that turns him on, it's the ability to buy it that does.

.

He's spent his whole like feeling like a loser, and a guy who can afford to buy a car like this must be good at something, right? Hyde wants to be good at something, like Jackie was always pushing him to do. She wanted him to be successful, and he suspects now that it wasn't really about the money, she probably just wanted him to feel pride in himself and to be invested in something, like himself for starters. After all, she invested everything she had in him, so it's only fair that he match it.

.

"You're sure about this?" he checks.

.

"Positive" she says.

.

"Would I have to move to Chicago?" he wonders, thinking of how hard it would be to leave Kitty and Red.

.

"Well, that's where the office is, but you could always go home on weekends or do a four day week and work from Point Place on Fridays" she suggest. "We'll work it out, just say yes. Do you want to help make your big sister look less dorky in front of music people?"

.

Hyde smiles wider than he has in months. "Whatever".

.

She flicks him on the earlobe. "That better have been a yes, you fool!"

.

"Yeah, I'll do it" he tells her. "Thanks Angie" he says meaningfully as he changes gears on the car and drives it back onto the road.

.

* * *

.

Fez is sitting on the couch reading "The Feminine Mystique" by Betty Freidan.

.

Donna walks down the internal stairs and laughs. "Fez, are you reading my book?"

.

Fez is very disturbed. "This was not what I thought it was going to be about".

.

She grabs the book out of his hands and puts it into her bag.

.

"Why have you been reading all of these non-sexy lady books lately?" he asks.

.

She's suddenly shy. "I don't know. I guess I just kind of find psychology interesting."

.

"Maybe you should become a psychologist?" he suggests.

.

Her brow knits. "Huh. You know, I never even thought about it. Do you think I'd be good at it?"

.

"Well, you listen to all of my woman problems and you only make fun of me 50% of the time" he smiles. "So yes".

.

"I always thought I'd work in radio though" she frowns.

.

"Can't you do both?" he asks.

.

"What? Like a radio psychologist? Do they even have those?" she wonders.

.

"If they don't, you could be the first" he brainstorms.

.

Donna smiles. "I could, couldn't I? Thanks Fez!" she frogs his arm affectionately. "I owe you a bag of jellybeans".

.

"YAY!" he cheers.

.

* * *

.

Jackie and Eric are back in the hotel room. She's just taken a shower and is in a robe, toweling her hair off.

.

Eric sits on the couch opposite the bed and smokes a joint. "Should I call them when I'm kind of high or after I'm very high?"

.

"Well, do you want Red to kind of stick his foot up your ass or shove it up the whole way?" she says, putting the question to him.

.

"I'm thinking, it's up there already so what's the difference?" he shrugs as he takes another hit.

.

Jackie storms over and snatches the joint out of his fingers. "Call them now and I'll give this back".

.

"And if I don't?" he challenges.

.

"Do you want to drive all the way back from Mexico sitting next to me while straight?" she asks.

.

"You have a very good point" he says pointing to her. He stands up and walks over to the phone, sneaking a hit off of the joint in her hand on the way.

.

"Hey!" she shouts as she catches him.

.

"I'm picking up the phone now, you see?" he lifts the receiver. "I'm dialing Point Place. Not too late to give me back the joint."

.

She holds her ground. "You need to be speaking to a human first".

.

He points to the phone ans whispers dramatically. "It's ringing".

.

"Hello? Forman residence" a voice answers the phone and Eric's face drops.

.

"Do you want this back now?" Jackie asks as she offers the joint.

.

Eric puts his hand up to stop her.

.

"Hello? Is anybody there?" the voice asks.

.

He is frozen, not able to speak or hang up.

.

"Eric, did somebody answer or not?" Jackie harasses him with a hand on the hip.

.

"...Eric?" the voice questions. "I could've sworn I just heard Jackie in the background".

.

He still says nothing.

.

Jackie shrugs, wanting to know what's up. She leans to grab the phone but he holds her off again with an outstretched palm.

.

"Hey I don't know if this is you or not, but if it is...Eric, I'm really sorry. I'm so sorry about what I said and for the way I acted. I know you came back and everything seemed weird and different, but I'm not. I mean, I am, but not in the way you think. If I could just talk to you, I think I could make you understand. I get it if you need time or something, but...it's just...I miss you. A lot." the voice says.

.

"I miss you too, Donna" he responds before hanging up the phone on her.

.

Jackie's mouth opens in shock as she crosses toward Eric. "That was Donna? Was she talking? What did she say?"

.

He cups her face in his hands. "Do be mad, but I've got to go for a walk, okay? I don't know how long I'll be".

.

He walks past her, opens the door and leaves the room, leaving Jackie completely baffled.

.

A sinking feeling starts to take hold of her stomach and she finds herself fighting back tears. She doesn't love him, not in that way, but he's all she has right now and when he walked out that door he took her tether with him. Now she feels like she's just floating aimlessly around, not knowing what she should be doing next and she's frightened. Why can't she be alone? Other people are fine by themselves, why not her?

.

She sits on the edge of the bed and decides to finish the joint.

.

A light knock sounds on the outside of the door as it pushes open. Jackie panics for a moment, looking for a spot to stub out the joint in case it's a housekeeper.

.

"Knock knock" Pam Burkhart sings as she lets herself into the room. "The door was ajar".

.

Jackie relaxes when she sees it's her mom, but then remembers the evening before and tenses up again. She takes a long, hard drag off of the joint and holds it.

.

Pam notices the pot. "Ooh, can I get a hit off of that?" she asks.

.

Jackie exhales. "Can't you act like a mother for once and just pretend to be shocked to catch me smoking dope?"

.

Pam laughs. "Come on Jacqueline, pot's no big deal" she says as she walks over to her daughter. "It's probably how you were conceived".

.

She begrudgingly hands her mom the joint. "What do you want?"

.

"I want to apologize" her mom informs her as she passes the joint back to her daughter.

.

"I'm surprised you even remember last night" she snorts as she flops backward onto her bed.

.

"I don't. Well, not most of it". Pam sits down on the foot on the bed next to her. "That's not what I want to apologize for".

.

Intrigued, Jackie slowly sits back up to listen.

.

"I know I haven't been the best mother" she starts before quickly receiving the brunt of Jackie's quirked eyebrow. "Okay fine, I'm a lousy mother" she admits. "But it's not because I don't love you."

.

The younger brunette rolls her eyes. "How can you say you love me when you have no idea what love is?"

.

Pam nods. "Maybe you're right. I mean, I never had a lot of it growing up. It's hard to know how to be a mother the right way when you never had a good one yourself" she confides.

.

"No. No, you don't get to shift blame. I had a bad mom too, but I know for a fact that I will be a fantastic mother. Not because I know how, but because I actually want to be" she spits out angrily as she stubs out the rest of the joint.

.

"Okay. You got me. I never wanted to be a mom. I got married young to a cold man from a good family with a lot of money and having a baby was what was expected of me" she confesses. "I wasn't allowed to work, I was there to look pretty and have babies, so I did. And for a while, you kept me busy and I wasn't bored, but then you got older and started going to school and Jack was away a lot, so I got lonely again." Pam wipes an errant tear that has fallen from her eye. "Being that lonely is awful Jackie, I hope you never have to experience it."

.

"Seriously?" Jackie gives her an incredulous look then decides to drop it. Her mother always has to be the best at everything, even loneliness. Why bother trying to compete for that prize? "You never wanted me?" Jackie asks, gutted by her mother's disclosure.

.

"No, I didn't. But I am glad I had you" she says. "I may not have had much of a hand in raising you over the past ten years, but you're by far the best thing I've done with my life, Jacqueline".

.

Jackie shakes her head. "Do you love me? Did you ever love me?"

.

Pam smooths her daughter's hair behind her ears. "I did and I do. I'm just really not very good at it".

.

"So what? That's it? You get to feel better about yourself for apologizing and then I leave and don't hear from you again until you randomly breeze back into town again in six months?" she digs, wanting to know what she's in for.

.

"I'm never going to be the kind of mom you deserve, and even if I wanted to, it's too late. But I can promise that I'll do better, okay? I'll try not to be_ as _lousy of a mom as I was before" she offers with a nervous laugh. "Is that okay?" she waits anxiously for an answer.

.

Jackie nods and puts her head on her mother's shoulder as Pam awkwardly tries to comfort her by rubbing her back.

.

She's not sure if she's going to keep her word or if Pam even truly meant it when she said it, but for ten minutes Jackie gets to pretend she has a mother again and it doesn't suck.

.

**A/N – It was tough to keep Pam in character while making her have a serious conversation with Jackie. Hopefully it wasn't OOC. Let me know! Please review.**


	11. Chapter 11

**CHAPTER 11**

.

Eric returns from his walk to find Jackie sitting across from her suitcase, which is completely packed. Their eyes meet for a moment and he already can tell what she's about to say.

.

"You're not coming back with me to Point Place." he tells her.

.

She plays with her bottom lip for a moment then answers. "I can't."

.

He nods. "I figured as much. If I were in your shoes I wouldn't either."

.

"I'm glad you understand" she whispers.

.

"That doesn't mean I'm happy about it" he flatly replies. "Where are you going?" he asks as he sits next to her on the bed.

.

She grabs his hand and interlaces her fingers with his. "I thought maybe Chicago. Michael and Brooke are there and my mom called an old modeling agent she used to use. She says he has some T.V. connections, so I figured maybe I could get a job working on a talk show or the news or something. Oh, and I emotionally blackmailed Pam into giving me a buttload of money to live off of for a while so I'm good on that end."

.

Eric smiles. "You're a total badass Jackie Burkhart. Who knew?"

.

She scoffs. "Only everybody."

.

"You sure you're going to be okay all alone?" he wonders, concerned for her.

.

"No. I'm not sure of anything, but I know I have to try. I can't be more alone in Chicago than I've been over the past six months in Point Place" she rationalizes.

.

He looks in her eyes. "It's good to see the old Jackie back. I've kind of missed her."

.

"Me too, but don't ever call me old, Eric. I'm the new and better Jackie" she grins.

.

"Gotcha" he says, his smile beginning to flag.

.

"You're going to be okay too, you know" she assures him. "Just focus on the things that are important to you."

.

He scratches his chin. "I want to be doing something that makes a difference, maybe with kids. I don't see myself staying in Point Place either. I mean, the world is so big and there's so much to see, you know?"

.

Jackie nods. "What about your love life?"

.

His brow furrows. "I want to be with a strong woman. Somebody who challenges me and isn't afraid to be herself. Somebody calm and even-keeled, because I can get a bit, you know..."

.

"Twitchy?" she laughs.

.

He laughs with her. "Yeah, I guess that's accurate. I suppose I just want a woman who really gets me and accepts me for who I am. It also wouldn't hurt if she's hot."

.

The little pixie smiles. "You know who you just described, right?"

.

He looks down and kicks his feet against the floor. "Yeah."

.

She turns his head towards her and looks deep into his eyes. "Eric Forman, you are one of the most amazing people I've ever met. I know you wonder what she sees in you, but _I get it,_ and I'm the prettiest girl in Wisconsin. She's not going to find somebody better because it doesn't exist. I'll bet you think she's going to leave you some day for some other guy like Casey, but I know for a fact that she doesn't want anybody else and never will. She wants you."

.

"Jackie, it's nice of you to say all those things, but you don't know all of that" he says, shaking his head.

.

"I do so! She was devastated when you left for Africa. She wasn't herself and she turned into this horrible bitch, and that's because half of her went to Botswana. That proves that she needs you just as much as you need her," she exclaims. "And I know she's depressed, but maybe if she saw a doctor or something, maybe they could help?"

.

"Do you really think we could work it out this time? I mean, I left her-again- and I'm pretty sure she wants to kick my ass," he guesses.

.

"When you and I...um...you know, did what we did...did you feel anything? I mean besides the obvious, because I am gorgeous. Did it feel like it did when you're with her? Has anybody ever made you feel that way besides her?" she challenges him.

.

He nods his head and points at her. "You, my clever padawan, are ready to graduate to a full-fledged Jedi Knight."

.

"I will take that dorked-out answer as a no, which means you have no choice but to make it work. If you want her bad enough, you'll do whatever it takes" she asserts, "even if it means dealing with her demons."

.

"Why doesn't that same logic apply to you and Hyde" he asks.

.

Jackie takes a deep breath and lets her head drop into her hands. Her head aches and thinking about Steven only make it feel worse. "Both people have to be in love for it to work" she answers simply.

.

Eric gives her an incredulous look. "You don't think he loves you?"

.

"He married somebody else after telling me he wasn't ready for marriage and then stayed with her and don't even get me started on the cruelty" she breathes again, trying not to cry from the bad memories beginning to flood in. "What about that screams 'in love' to you?"

.

"I don't know what to say. I mean, as your friend, I'd tell you to stay as far away from him as you can possibly get and not to look back," he states.

.

"Good advice" she interjects.

.

"-But as his friend, I'd tell him that he was never happier than when he was with you, and that you made him a better person. He's stubborn and he's scared of his own feelings. It's just how he is, but you can't take what he says and does at face value, because you know better than anybody that what he says and how he feels are usually two different things" he explains.

.

"I know, and I'll always love him. Trust me, I've tried not to" she admits reluctantly. "But it's time for me to move on and see what else is out there. I deserve better" she declares.

.

Jackie stands up and pulls her bag towards the door.

.

"Can I drive you to the airport at least?" he offers.

.

She shakes her head no. "I have a cab coming and you need to get on the road" she smiles sadly.

.

"Will you ever come back?" he wonders.

.

She shrugs. "Maybe. Look, I'll never stop being your friend Eric, so you don't have to worry about that. I'll call you when I get there, but can you do me a favor and please don't tell anybody else where I've gone—even Donna? I just want to be forgotten about. It's easier like that" she decides.

.

"I promise won't say anything, but Jackie, come on. Nobody could ever forget about you, even if they desperately wanted to" he chuckles as he leans in to kiss her goodbye.

.

She wraps her hands around the back of his head and kisses him with feeling, not as a lover, but as a friend who loves him. They push their foreheads together and take one last look, knowing this is a moment in time that will never be repeated and most definitely won't ever be discussed. Neither of them thought they'd ever connect like this, and it surprised them in more ways than imaginable.

.

"Thank you" Jackie whispers as tears start to fall silently from her eyes. "You have no idea how much this meant to me".

.

He shakes his head to agree. "Yeah, I do" he says as he opens the door of their room for her as she walks through it.

.

"See you in the mirror world, Eric Forman" she shouts as she wheels her luggage down the long hallway.

.

"Live long and prosper, Jackie Burkhart" Eric smiles as he gives her the Vulcan salute.

.

* * *

.

Two days later.

.

Hyde walks into the basement and throws his jacket on the couch. Kitty is downstairs doing laundry. She hears him come in and turns around to greet him.

.

"Hi sweetie. How was your trip to Chicago?" she asks as she fills the laundry basket with warm clothes from the dryer.

.

"It was good. Great actually" he says with enthusiasm.

.

"Well well well" Kitty smiles. "This is certainly a change. You don't normally sound this excited when you come home from a day of work."

.

"I don't normally do this kind of work" he replies as he walks over to help her lift the full basket on to the chair.

.

"What were you and Angie up to. I can't wait to hear all about the exciting world of rock-and-roll! Don't forget me when you're famous" she laughs as she begins folding the clean clothes.

.

"We're putting together a concert series, so we had to meet with a bunch of artist's agents and reps to convince them to sign up their talent to our roster" he explains.

.

"Well that sounds very important" she says very seriously, despite the fact that she barely understand a word of it past 'concert series'."

.

"Yeah" he agrees as he sits in his usual chair.

.

Kitty suddenly has a strange feeling that her foster son has something to tell her. She usually has a sixth sense when it comes to her children, Steven especially, which is ironic considering he's the least forthcoming. "Is something bothering you, Steven?"

.

"Me? Uh, no." he answers quickly, trying to avoid having a difficult conversation right now. He knows he's going to have to take the hit sooner or later, but he's only just processing the information himself and he wants to have his thoughts together before he drops the bomb on the Formans.

.

She looks at him like he's lying, because she knows for a fact he is. "Steven...you can tell me. Does this have to do with a certain miniature brunette with a loud voice and questionable whereabouts?"

.

He hasn't even thought of Jackie being missing since the whole job thing came up. He definitely doesn't want to start thinking about her now, but talking about anything is preferable to breaking Mrs. Forman's heart. "You know" he shrugs, hoping for a quick and painless end.

.

"Eric called five hours ago from outside of Springfield, so they should be home any minute" she mentions. "Do you know what you're going to say to her?"

.

He didn't. Even if he had planned on speaking to her, he definitely had no idea how to say the things he wants her to know without her bolting or giving him a slap to the face, because honestly he deserves both. "I hadn't given it much thought". A lie of course, but the shame coursing around his body is starting to make his skin burn hotly.

.

"But Steven, how do you plan on getting her to forgive you if you're not even thinking about what you're going to say?" she wonders, completely miffed.

.

"Yeah, I don't really see that happening, Mrs. Forman" he says as he shuffles slowly to the outer stairs. "I blew it."

.

Kitty puts the shirt she's folding down. "Steven Hyde, you need to make things right with that girl and you know it. If you can just get her to listen to you, and you tell her how you really feel, she'll give you another shot. She loves you."

.

He nods in agreement. "I'm gonna go get some air, if you don't mind" he says as he lumbers up the steps to the driveway.

.

Kitty scowls as she angrily folds the rest of the clothes.

.

* * *

.

Hyde steps out into the fresh cold air and feels it seep through his thick wool jacket, his Packers sweatshirt, and past his undershirt to cool his overheated skin. No sooner has he walked to the end of the pathway that the vista cruiser comes sliding into the driveway.

.

Panic shocks his senses awake as he looks around at the scene of the crime and shudders. He can't see her for the first time here. Encountering her in the same place that he eviscerated her last is only going to give her nasty flashbacks, which she'll certainly take out on him verbally. Or worse yet, she may cry.

.

As he turns to walk back to the basement, he hear his name being called a few times.

.

"Hyde! Turn around, man!" Eric yells as he struggles to catch up through the thick snow.

.

Tempted to keep walking, Hyde's curiosity gets the better of him as he notices the absence of a familiar abrasive voice he expected to hear. "Hey man" he says casually as he turns to face his friend.

.

Eric looks at him with a mixture of disgust and pity. This kid has been his best friend for as long as he can remember, and even his brother for the better part of three years, but the look on Jackie's face when he told her he'd do anything not to marry her cannot be scrubbed from his brain.

.

"How was your trip" Hyde asks snidely with a good measure of sarcasm.

.

"It was great, actually" he responds as he fishes his duffel bag out of the back seat.

.

"Where's your _girlfriend_? Did you drop her at home before you came here?" he wonders not-so-innocently.

.

"Something like that. Where's mom?" he asks, unsure of which door he should take.

.

"Basement" Hyde blurts out as he decides to go for a walk.

.

The drapes in corner window of the opposite house flutter shut.

.

* * *

.

Donna slides to the floor of her room and tries to get her bearings. God the sight of him is good, but she just can't go over there all gangbusters and expect him not to be overwhelmed. She'll just have to wait until later, she decides. Let him settle in.

.

She looks at the clock and notices two minutes have passed since the last time she checked.

.

That's long enough, she thinks to herself as she runs down the stairs and grabs her coat.

.

* * *

.

Hyde walks along the road, not sure where he's headed, but in the back of his mind there can only be one place.

.

As he approaches the small apartment complex in front of him, he still has no clue what he plans on saying, but he does know for sure that he needs to say something. He's moving to Chicago in a few days—at least, that's his plan—and if there's even an iota of a chance she might forgive him, that she wants him to stay in Point Place, he's going to take it. The clock is ticking though, and regardless of the inconvenience to her, he really needs to get an answer now—even if he has to provoke her into revealing her feelings about him through a fight.

.

"Oh Hyde!" a deep yet feminine voice sings out from behind him.

.

He turns around, only to come face-to-face with Fenton. Definitely not the chick he came here to see.

.

"Happy New Year, doll" he coos, purposely appropriating the nickname he uses for Jackie.

.

Hyde groans. "Right back atcha, Fenton. Kind of in a rush right now though. Gotta go talk some sense into Jackie" he divulges, hoping it will stave off the onslaught of Fenton's unrelenting brand of double entendre and sexual innuendo.

.

"Jackie's not here. She's gone" he tells him, finding it odd that he'd have no idea.

.

He looks at him in shock. "What do you mean by gone?"

.

"I mean gone, studmuffin. Like finito. She's moved." he clarifies, still wondering how he got this piece of information before her friend did.

.

Completely stunned, Hyde wonders where Forman might have taken her. "Is Fez up there still?"

.

Fenton's demeanor sours. "Ugh, who cares about that low-rent Erik Estrada? Am I right? It's more fun to hang out when it's just us."

.

"Uh...I gotta go" Hyde says abruptly as he runs up the two flights of stairs to Fez's place.

.

* * *

.

Eric and Kitty are catching up in the basement when Donna comes scrambling in. She attempts to appear surprised to find him there. "Oh. Eric. I wasn't expecting to see you here?"

.

"But I told you he would be home around now" Kitty reminds the confused redhead.

.

"Okay, fine. I saw your car pulling in and I ran my ass down here so fast I'm still in my slippers" she admits, pointing to her shoes.

.

Eric breaks out into a smile. He forgot how cute she is when she's flustered.

.

Kitty looks back and forth between the kids and realizes she should probably leave them alone to talk. "I'm gonna, um, bring this laundry upstairs now. You two have a good time catching up and try not to argue" she says tersely, followed up by her signature laugh. "And, I'll just..." She runs over and steals the keys to the vista cruiser out of his hand. "There" she exhales in relief. "Have a fun chat!" she wishes as she runs upstairs without the laundry basket.

.

Donna and Eric stare at each other for a moment in silence.

.

"I like your hair" he says, noticing her change in color.

.

She examines a lock of her hair as she walks down the stairs into the basement. "Thanks. The blonde was fun for a while, I guess, but I feel more like myself this way."

.

She reaches the bottom and they stand awkwardly eying each other.

.

"Where's Jackie?" she asks as she sits at one end of the couch.

.

He looks down, unsure of what to say. "She's doing okay" he answers a different question as he sits on the opposite end of the couch.

.

"I'm...I'm really sorry I attacked you that night" she sincerely offers. "I think I had a lot of anger stored inside of me and it came out in a weird way. I mean, of course you're not to blame for Hyde fucking up his entire life. I kind of am" she tells him quietly.

.

Eric looks at her like she's nuts. "You got Hyde drunk in Vegas?"

.

She laughs. "Well, I'm not responsible for him getting himself married, but I do feel responsible for him staying married. That was uncool to do to Jackie and just bad bad advice."

.

"How are you coming to all of this just now?" he questions, curious as to how she achieved her epiphany.

.

"I talked to your mom a lot, who made me realize Hyde's been doing pretty badly since he ran out on Jackie. Then I spoke to Hyde, who pretty much admitted it was the dumbest mistake he ever made and that he's miserable. I don't know why I didn't see it. I think maybe part of me was glad Jackie was suffering, because I was suffering too. I know it's selfish, but they do say that misery loves company" she confesses, embarrassed of her behavior.

.

"Why were you so miserable?" he asks, apprehensive of her answer.

.

She lowers her eyes as they begin to well with tears. "I guess I just felt lost without you here."

.

Any frost remaining on Eric's heart melts instantly as he watches the woman he loves cry in front of him. He scoots closer to her and rests his hands on her knees. "I didn't know what it was doing to you" he whispers almost to himself. "I'm sorry I left you. If I'd known, I wouldn't have..."

.

"You wouldn't have what, Eric?" Donna asks rather coldly as she leans her head up, causing tears to rolls down both cheeks.

.

"I know now I've been selfish, and that I made a lot of decisions without taking into account how they might affect you" he admits. "Jackie made me see that."

.

She wipes the tears from her cheeks with the backs of her hands. "Jackie actually defended me?"

.

He nods. "Well, I mean, she wants me to be happy, and when I do stupid things to hurt us, it doesn't make me happy."

.

"So what? Are you guys like, best friends now or something?" she wonders jealously, not sure which one of them she's jealous of.

.

"Something like that, I guess" he shrugs. "She's way deeper than I gave her credit for being, and pretty smart too."

.

Donna nods in agreement. "Yeah. Guess I really fucked that relationship up too" she sadly notes.

.

"You and Hyde really did a number on her. I mean, Hyde's like a brother an all, but if he weren't, I swear I would break his nose" he complains angrily. "Or I'd have to have you do it" he smirks, which earns him a smile.

.

"I probably owe her that. Is she around? She's next in line on the Donna Pinciotti Apology Tour" she jokes.

.

Eric's face tightens. "She left. For good" he clarifies, as he breaks the terrible news.

.

Donna's face crumples up and she fold into herself, crying so hard she doesn't make a sound. He closes the rest of the distance between them and rubs her back.

.

"She had to, you know? There was nothing for her but bad memories here. She wanted a fresh start and she deserves if after what she's been through" he explains as he consoles her.

.

The feeling of his hands on her back makes the entire area tingle and flush. She feels distracted from her pain, but in no way relaxed. She finally comes up for air, red-faced and swollen. "I'll never be able to apologize now. I won't be able to make it right" she sobs. "Do you know where she is?"

.

He shakes his head no.

.

"Hyde's gonna freak the hell out" she realizes as she covers her mouth.

.

"Yeah, I don't really give a shit about Hyde right now" he snaps.

.

"He wanted to try to make things up to her" she informs him.

.

"I don't know. She was so broken when we left here and now she's...man, she's just so brave. Her parents are a bunch of assholes who barely know she's alive. Jackie's like this little lost girl with nobody looking out for her, and she's just picking herself up and moving forward. She really inspired me, you know?" he looks at Donna earnestly.

.

Donna feels a twinge of envy pinch her heart, as she looks deep into his eyes, searching for signs of love for her little friend. This is her greatest nightmare, and she suspects it may have actually come true. "You didn't...you're not a little in love with her are you?"

.

Eric sighs as he decides how to proceed with this. "I do love her" he tells her, causing her heart to immediately stop beating. "But I'm not in love with her" he continues, resuscitating her vital organ. "I'm in love with you."

.

"Where does this leave us?" she wonders anxiously.

.

Eric continues rubbing his ex's back with one hand and takes her chin with his other. "I know we have a lot of stuff to forgive each other for, and maybe there are some things we need to change about ourselves, but I want to try. I have to try, if you will."

.

Donna's insides explode and fizzle like pop rocks as she launches herself at her once-again boyfriend, kissing him with everything she has in her. She slides her lips over and under his, probing his mouth with her tongue, running her fingers through his soft brown hair. She kisses him hard and fast, over and over again until their lips are swollen and chapped and they both come up gasping for air.

.

"Wow" he exclaims, letting his hands roam up and down her taut arms and back.

.

"I missed you so much" she says, her voice catching. "I won't make the same mistakes again, honey. The depression...I'm working on it, you'll see" she promises.

.

He cups her face in his hands and smiles. "We'll work on it together, okay? I missed you too, you're the reason I came home, you know" he declares as he kisses her softly this time. "I won't leave you again, ok? I love you."

.

Donna curls up onto her boyfriend's lap and strokes the stubble on his face. "All of that other stuff doesn't matter to me, when my best friend's gone. I'm just glad you're home."

.

"Wanna go sit on the vista cruiser for old time's sake? I'm pretty sure our 'spare parts' will fuse nicely to the hood with all the ice" he offers jokingly.

.

"I can think of somewhere warmer you can put your spare part" she smiles at him with her eyes.

.

**A/N – Time jump coming up next. **


	12. Chapter 12

**Thanks so much for all of your reviews-I really appreciate the effort. I was wondering if people were reading and now I know you're still out there : )**

**.**

**CHAPTER 12**

.

December 6, 1981.

.

Jackie sits on carpet in the middle of a large, well-appointed living room playing with a beautiful dark-haired baby. She makes funny faces at her and mentally pats herself on the back for being about to elicit a response with almost every grimace and odd sound.

.

"I don't know what I would do if I didn't have her" Jackie sighs, almost to herself as she kisses the baby's soft hair and holds her closely to her chest.

.

"I do. You'd be out there trying to find a man so you can have your own little princess. You're never going to meet a guy when you spend all your time hanging out with a toddler" Brooke jokes as she strides across the floor to retrieve her little girl.

.

Betsy climbs off of Jackie's lap and scales Brooke like a mountain climber.

.

Jackie stands up and follows her. "You try having the energy to go out when work starts at 2am. What am I supposed to do, party for a few hours and then go on air looking all haggard?" she sniffs as she readjusts the necklace that Betsy was playing with.

.

"Jackie, you're on at 4am, nobody is looking at your hair" she laughs. "They just want to know if they need to bring an umbrella to work."

.

"People who are up at 4am deserve beauty with their weather too, Brooke. Don't they Betsy?" she coos at her Goddaughter.

.

"Yeah" Betsy replies.

.

"She's been asking for you at bath time" she makes a sad face at her friend. "I don't think she's used to you not living so nearby anymore. Neither am I. I hate your new apartment."

.

"It's closer to the station" she shrugs. The shorter girl strokes Betsy's face and sighs. "I won't forget you pumpkin. You're Auntie Jackie's special girl." She kisses the toddler again and frowns. "Don't suppose she's seen much of her Godfather lately?"

.

Brooke laughs. "You know you can just ask about him. Nobody's judging- least of all me."

.

"Fine. How's he doing?" she asks, bitterly ashamed of herself for even caring.

.

"He moved, actually" she informs her.

.

"From the basement or from Point Place?" she wonders.

.

Brooke kneads her hands together nervously. She knows she's going to get her ass kicked for withholding this important information, but she can't watch Jackie avoid going home for another holiday season, just because she's worried she'll run into Hyde there. "Both."

.

"Wow. That is news. I wonder what finally provoked him into doing that." she scratches her head, mystified. "Where is he living?"

.

The spunky librarian takes a huge breath and reassures herself that ripping the band-aid off quickly is the only way. "Chicago."

.

Jackie feels like somebody sucked all of the air out of the room. He's in Chicago. He's in Chicago? Why would he move to the one place that she ran to escape him? Does he know she's here? He hasn't come to see her, so maybe he doesn't. Or maybe he knows she's here and hasn't come to see her because he couldn't care less about her? "How long? W-When did he move here?"

.

Brooke starts to unconsciously retreat towards the kitchen. "Um...January of last year?".

.

Jackie's face drops and rage enters her eyes. "January. As in, 23 months ago? As in, the month that I moved to Chicago? Why didn't you say something?" The little pixie's fists balls up tightly as she walks toward her tall friend with purpose.

.

"I didn't want to upset you. You were trying to get your life back together and I didn't think you'd stay if you knew." The young mother lets out a burst of nervous laughter. "Remember Jackie, I'm holding a baby!"

.

"Well you'd better be holding that baby all night when you sleep, because I will be waiting at your bedside!" she shrieks.

.

"Aw Yeah!" Kelso screams as he enters the room. "Gotta love a chick fight, especially one that mentions the word bed" he nods appreciatively.

.

Her possessed eyes turn and focus on her ex-boyfriend. "Did you know about this too, moron?"

.

"Uh...no?" he looks around nervously for an excuse to leave.

.

Brooke gives him an incredulous look.

.

"Damn Brooke! Fine. I knew. What are you gonna do to me?" he stands up bravely to his ex. "Just please don't hurt the money-maker" he begs and gestures to his face.

.

Jackie finds the nearest chair and sits down. "Does he know I'm here?" she asks them.

.

"No" Brooke answers quickly. "He has no idea".

.

"Has he, um, does he know you're all in contact with me?" she wonders.

.

"He's suspicious of Donna, but he doesn't really bother the rest of us about it, which is amazing, considering I'm married to the world's worst liar" she grumbles, shooting a bemused glare at Kelso.

.

A quizzical look passes over Jackie's face. "Yeah, how did you manage to keep this idiot's mouth shut for so long?"

.

"He responds well to corporal punishment" she says, to which Kelso nods and winks.

.

"Are you coming home for Christmas?" he asks.

.

"I don't really have a home, so no. Mom is somewhere is Baja and dad is spending the holidays with Uncle Sam yet again," she explains.

.

"Why don't you just go spend Christmas with your Uncle too?" Kelso suggests innocently.

.

Jackie rolls her eyes and ignores his stupidity. "The Formans are taking a two week cruise this year with the Pinciottis, so they're all going to be in the Caribbean. Fez is staying in LA with his girlfriend's family - not that he'll talk to me anyway. So that just leaves me, alone, as usual".

.

"Hyde's alone" Kelso volunteers.

.

She glares at him. "Sure. I'll rush right on over there and bake him a pie. Anyway, he's not alone. He has a sister and a dad to celebrate with," she says.

.

"No, they're actually going to Europe for a music festival. He's going to be alone too." Brooke asserts.

.

"What about his a stable of skanks? Surely one of them can get the night off from their pimp to join him for turkey?" she quips.

.

"Honey, he's barely been dating. He's kind of turned into a workaholic" she informs her.

.

"Yeah, he's no fun anymore" Kelso complains. "Neither are you" he pouts.

.

"You're alone a lot, he's alone a lot. You could be alone together? Maybe it's fate?" Brooke suggests hopefully.

.

"Then I guess Steven and I share the same fate as millions of other friendless losers around the country who will be drinking their way through Christmas" she shrugs.

.

"Oh Jackie, I'd invite you to join us, but my family is taking us all to Aspen for the holidays this year" she says, giving her sad eyes.

.

"Brooke, seriously. It's no big deal. I'm getting two and a half weeks off from work when the station scales down during the month of December. I'll probably just read all of those books I've been meaning to get to. Or maybe go to a spa. Also, I have to pack for my move to New York. It'll be great to have that time to myself. Besides, I barely even celebrate Christmas anymore, it was never my kind of holiday" she lies, trying to save face and put her friend's conscience at ease.

.

For some reason, she flashes back to that Christmas she and Steven spent together goofing off. Just ordering in Chinese food, playing board games and having sex. She even wore her cheerleader uniform for him and gave him a show. It wasn't traditional, but it was still one of the best holidays she's ever had.

.

"Which reminds me, I should really get back home" she smiles. "Gotta go brush off my library card so I can get a jump start" she blows a kiss at the auburn-haired beauty as she plots a clean exit.

.

* * *

.

December 13, 1981

.

Steven Hyde closes the main register at the front end of the store and rubs his forehead. It's been a particularly busy holiday season and he's beat. All he wants to do is kick back at home with a cold one and put his feet up. The 'Rockin' Christmas carol record he's been playing non-stop in the shop has been putting him on edge and he's eager to enjoy the silence of his spare, one bedroom apartment. It may not be much to look at, but it's sure as hell better than walking around and watching all the corporate drones shopping frantically, gagging to shell out big bucks on presents for their ungrateful kids before the 24th rolls around. Yeah, those drones keep him in business, but he doesn't have to like them.

.

With all of his friends and family gone, it's proven to be a lonely season, but he saw everybody at Thanksgiving and he's grateful for that. When he lived at home with Edna and Bud, his Christmas typically consisted of a frozen turkey dinner, a potted plant decorated with a lone ornament he made in Home-Ec class, and the regular absence of gifts. His mom always used to say she gave him the gift of life and that it should be good enough. You can't miss what you never really had, right?

.

As he puts the last few stray items away he hears the jingle bells tied to the door ring out, signaling that a new customer has entered the store. He comes out from behind the desk to greet them. "Hey man, I'm sorry but we just closed. We're open tomorrow at 9am, if you want to come back then".

.

As he looks at the man's face, he notices something is off. It's 25F degrees outside right now but the dude is sweating profusely and he's wearing nothing but a black turtleneck and dark jeans. No coat or anything. In Hyde's experience, this can only mean one of two things. Either the guy is flop sweating at a gambling table or he high on smack. Judging by the dilated pupils this guys' sporting, he's going to guess the latter.

.

"Did you hear me man? We're closed, okay?" he repeats, as he starts to feel a nagging sense of dread tug at his gut.

.

The stranger starts shaking a little and looks as though he's about to cry. Hyde's used to dealing with thugs, but this guy is too far gone and he's not too experienced with smackheads.

.

Out of the blue, he hears a loud pop and a hot, searing pain shoots violently through his abdomen. He looks down at his body and notices blood seeping through his clothes.

.

"Gimme the keys to the register!" the guy screams, as Hyde stares at himself in shock. "Hey! I want money! Gimme the keys!" he shouts again.

.

Hyde looks at the thief with a mixture of confusion and sadness and tosses the keys in his hand to the floor, where he soon follows with a dull thud.

.

* * *

.

Jackie is in bed and she can't sleep. It's only 11pm, but she's used to going to bed much earlier for work, so this is decidedly another bout of insomnia, something she's been struggling with a lot lately. She looks down at her book and realizes that she's read the same page about ten times now and still has no idea what it says.

.

She places the book on the side table and walks to her kitchen, hoping that a glass of red wine might do the trick. Halfway through her pour, she hears the phone ring.

.

Her face scrunches up. Who the hell could be calling her at this hour? Almost everybody she knows is out of town for the holidays and not too many people have her number.

.

She lifts the receiver and is immediately taken aback by the faulty, crackling connection and the heavy breathing on the other end of the line. "Mom? Is that you?" she asks improbably. Pam has called exactly twice this year and one time was a mistake because she meant to dial somebody else's number.

.

"Jackie, it's me" Eric says breathlessly.

.

"Eric? Aren't you supposed to be in Jamaica or Belize or something?" she asks, completely confused but pleasantly surprised.

.

"I am. Jackie listen to me. You have to go to the hospital right now. Everybody is out of town and something has happened to Hyde" he tells her, trying hard to keep his shit together.

.

Jackie feels as though she must be dreaming. She's never heard Eric this nervous before and the thought of something happening to Hyde is just...

.

"Jackie! Are you there?" he shouts into the phone.

.

"Yeah. Yes. Sorry" she says, snapping out of it quickly. "Which hospital is he at?"

.

"He's at Mercy. You have to leave now. He's really in trouble and you're the only one around" he pleads, his breathing ragged and pained.

.

"I'll go. Of course, I'll go" she says as she kicks off her slippers.

.

In the background, she can hear Donna speak "Oh thank God. She's going to go, Kitty, don't worry".

.

"I'll leave a number on your machine where you can leave messages for us at the hospital, so please call us when you know something, okay?" he begs in a tight voice.

.

Jackie nods frantically. "Of course" she says numbly.

.

She can hear Eric moving closer to the phone as his breathing becomes louder. "I know this is the last thing you want to be doing but he needs you, and despite what you say, I know you still love him. Good luck, okay? Please call us when you know something".

.

She manages to squeak out a weak "Bye" before dropping the phone completely and stares like a catatonic at her discarded, pink fuzzy slippers.

.

* * *

.

Jackie thrusts money into the cab driver's hands and runs out of the car, nearly slamming the door on her pristine, white woolen coat. As she runs towards the ER, she feels herself falling faint at the thought of Steven being sick or injured. He's always been the strong one, the one who protects everybody else, and the idea of him helplessly lying in a hospital bed with nobody around who loves him is making her dizzy with worry.

.

"I'm here for Steven Hyde" she rasps at the woman manning the front desk.

.

"Hang on a second" she says as she thumbs through a roster with the names of those admitted and their illnesses. "Oh" she remarks as she locates his name. "The gunshot victim, right?"

.

Jackie's hands rush to her mouth and stifle a sob. "No. No. That has to be a mistake. Check it again!" she yells angrily at the attendant.

.

The woman's eyes soften as she realizes this is fresh news. "I'm sorry honey. Is he your boyfriend?"

.

Jackie's face constricts violently as she cries silently into her hands, unable to emit any sound.

.

The woman walks around the desk and wraps her arm around Jackie's shoulders. "It's okay honey, breathe deep. We don't need to admit two people in the ER" she jokes. "I'll take you to him".

.

Reeling from shock, the woman shuffles Jackie about the vast and varied hallways of the hospital with little resistance or cooperation, much like an air hockey puck at an arcade.

.

As she finally reaches her destination, the woman rubs the side of her arm and wishes her luck, before abandoning her outside of the hospital room.

.

Jackie lifts her hand to the doorknob and is paralyzed with fear. Thoughts of grave damage or impending death strike her down like hail the size of golf balls, and she can't bring herself to confirm the reality of the situation by seeing him in the flesh.

.

"Miss?" a man in a white coat approaches her from behind. "Are you the family of Steven Hyde?" he asks.

.

Jackie nods silently, knowing how difficult it will be for her to gain access to him as only a friend. Or an ex-friend, for that matter.

.

"Mr. Hyde was attacked in his store this evening by an armed robber, who shot him in the abdomen with a medium caliber weapon. We were able to stop the bleeding, but the angle of the gunshot caused the bullet to get lodged in his hip bone, so we had to operate to remove it. He got really lucky, because if it had been a few inches higher, we might be having an entirely different conversation right now" he explains.

.

"Will he be okay?" she wonders nervously.

.

"He's going to make it, but he'll need a lot of rehab. He won't be able to walk for a while, and when he does, he'll need crutches or a cane. He may always have a limp, it's too soon to tell" he continues, giving out all the details he can. "He did hit his head pretty hard on the way down and suffered a small hemorrhage, but we were able to treat it using drugs and we don't anticipate him needing surgery for it, but we'll need to keep an eye on that, just in case" he informs her. "He could have some memory loss or temporary loss of function in certain areas, but those symptoms should go away as the swelling in his brain decreases."

.

Jackie blindly nods. After hearing the words 'he's going to make it' everything else has been a blur.

.

"Would you like to see him?" he asks as he turns the handle of the door and ushers her inside.

.

* * *

.

As she closes in on Steven's bedside, she's amazed at how peaceful he looks. Other than the tubes attached to his arm and sensors on his chest, he looks remarkably normal above the sheet.

.

She walks ambivalently toward his sleeping form and plants herself in the chair next to him.

.

"Should we be expecting anybody else?" the doctor wonders.

.

Jackie shakes her head slowly. "It's just me."

.

He smiles at the beautiful girl in the winter white coat, amazed at the great composure she has for someone of such a young age. "I'll leave you two alone and check on him in a little bit."

.

"Thank you" she whispers as she turns her attention to the man in the bed.

.

She swallows hard before lifting the sheet to search for his hand. She instantly catches site of the bullet wound area, which has been covered in sterile gauze, and is almost entirely soaked through with blood. She grabs his hand quickly and replaces the sheet, closing her eyes tightly to try to block out the image from her memory.

.

She interlaces her fingers with his, which she finds incredibly bizarre knowing they haven't held hands in almost two years, yet here she is doing it without his knowledge. If she's being honest with herself, she's had fantasies in the past of sneaking into his room while he slept and doing just this.

.

His hand is warm and feels just how she remembers. After two years of daily hand-holding, she's memorized everything about it from the weight of his hand to the roughness of his index finger and thumb from practicing the guitar. She brings his hand to her face and kisses it, sighing into his skin, which smells not like him, but a combination of antiseptics and adhesives from the tape keeping his IV in. As she puts his hand down, she's puzzled to discover that it's wet, though soon realizes that she's been crying the entire time she's been in there, but has been too shocked to notice.

.

She runs her fingers gingerly along the bruise on his temple, where he struck his head and lets her hand wander into his curly hair. Bending over, she peppers his bruise with featherlight kisses and strokes his cheek. Part of her feels dirty touching him like this while he's unconscious. He'd probably be angry to know she was even there, much less touching him so intimately. Feeling as though she's already crossed a line, she figures it wouldn't hurt to steal a kiss - so she brushes her lips against his softly, just to remember how they feel.

.

"Oh Steven" she weeps, holding his hand to her heart. "I was so scared. I know we don't have the best relationship right now, but I miss you" she whispers to him, before wiping her tears with the back of her hand. "I just miss you."

.

* * *

.

December 18, 1981

.

Now stable enough to be moved out of the hospital, but still not fully conscious thanks to the heavy duty painkillers, Jackie and an orderly from the hospital move Hyde from the wheelchair into her the bed in her apartment.

.

She had no choice. The hospital wanted to release him and he has nobody else in town to care for him, so she stepped up at the behest of Kitty Forman. She would've volunteered to do it for him regardless, though she's fairly certain he'd laugh in the face of anybody who asked him to do the same for her. But she's not him, which is a good thing, she reminds herself.

.

She pays the orderly and looks over at the bag of medical supplies she's been given. Gauze, tape, antiseptic, painkillers and of course, the dreaded bedpan, which she anticipates will be the most awkward experience of either of their lives.

.

Looking at him in the hospital gown, she feels suddenly very sad, knowing he'd be extremely embarrassed to wake up in her bed in this condition. She knows people are sick in the hospital, but do the gowns have to be so horribly depressing? She's convinced people would heal faster if they would look at something pretty. Building on that logic, she decides to give him a sponge bath to make him feel and look better, plus he's grimy and making her bedsheets disgusting. She assures herself those are the only reasons.

.

Jackie fills a large bucket with slightly soapy warm water and approaches her patient. She tentatively pulls out all of the ties on his gown and sheds the cotton monstrosity to the floor. Starting with his hands, she rubs the soft sponge against his skin as she works her way around. As she reaches his chest, she starts to feel like a pervert. She's actually enjoying this and it's wrong, but he needs to be clean and she's the only one around to do it. You not Fez, she reminds herself.

.

She runs a bare wet hand down the valley of his strong chest and sighs. God she misses feeling his chest pressed up against her back at night. She moves the sponge over his neck and back down the other side to his other arm and finally his face.

.

Unsure if he's dreaming or not, Hyde wonders where the hell he is and what's happening to him. He would feel nervous and disoriented if the sensations and smells weren't so familiar to him. He recognizes the smell of cherries and lavender and the softness of the sheets, but his eyelids are too heavy to open, so he lies there like The Who's Tommy, experiencing everything around him by touch and smell.

.

Jackie reaches into the bottom drawer of her dresser and lifts out a concert t-shirt. May as well make him feel comfortable. As she guides the t-shirt over his head and arms, she pulls it down and around his torso, careful not to let it touch his wound, which needs a fresh bandage.

.

Jackie leans over the bed to grab the antiseptic that she left on the opposing side table, accidentally forcing her breasts into his face in the process.

.

Hyde stirs and his hands reach up and instinctively feel her up. Even in his sleep he seems to know his way around a woman, which both impresses and disgusts her simultaneously. Her eyes widen in surprise as she slides them down her torso and back down by his sides.

.

"Where am I?" he slurs almost incoherently. This is the moment she's been dreading. She not only has to explain to him what happened by also why the woman he loathes more than all others has her hands all over him and is caring for him in her bed.

.

He remembers the scent, knowing it's not one he'll ever forget. Jackie. He'd know that smell anywhere, because he's never smelled anything like it before or since. Jackie. Why is he smelling her? He wonders for a moment if he's time traveled, died, or hallucinating. Those are the only reasons that might explain why he's smelling her again now, after being deprived of her scent for the last 18 months.

.

"Shh shh shh" she tries to calm him, hoping not to alarm him in his weakened state. She strokes his hair the way she used to when they cuddled on the couch. Sometimes after a tough day, he'd make her do it until he passed out in her arms.

.

God, the sensations are overwhelming him. The stroking, the smells, the weight of her breasts, this can't all be real. He must be dead. He has to be dead. "Am I dead?" he manages to slip out in a soft croak.

.

"No. You're not dead" she almost feels like crying from happiness at being able to say that out loud to him. "You've just been hurt, but you're going to be okay" she asserts.

.

His brows furrow with confusion. "Jackie?"

.

She freezes for a moment, then continues stroking his hair. "Yeah Steven, it's me. I'm taking care of you."

.

Through sheer will, he manages to pry his heavy lids open to look at her. As his eyes focus, her beautiful face, which he hasn't seen since it was tear-stained and swollen from his cruelty, appears before him as radiant as ever.

.

"Welcome back" she says softly as she smiles half-heartedly.

.

He watches her for a moment and takes in her form and his surroundings. "Is it really you?" he whispers through a parched throat.

.

She nods and her smile finally spreads to her eyes. "It's me Steven. It's Jackie."

.

He lifts one hand and runs it down her bare arm to make sure she's real, burning her skin with his thumb and smiles faintly. "Long time no see, doll."

.

**A/N – Finally some J/H interaction. I had to keep them apart to help them grow, but now you'll get what you came for, zennies! Hope it was worth the wait. Please review.**


	13. Chapter 13

**The chapter is still rated T. No sex yet (sorry) but some dirty thoughts occur toward the end.**

**.**

**CHAPTER 13**

.

**_December 18, 1981_**

.

"About a week ago you were in an accident" Jackie tells Hyde, straight out.

.

A wave of confusion eclipses his face. "I was? What kind of accident?"

.

"Okay fine. You were shot by a drugged-out madman who was robbing your store" she sighs.

.

Mildly amused, he asks "Did you think one of those would be preferable over the other?"

.

"In one of them you get your ass kicked, so...yeah" she bites her lip.

.

"What am I doing here?" he wonders. "Not that I'm not grateful, because I am" he's quick to add.

.

"Well, um, you know how we both have shitty parents and all of our close friends are away on vacation for the holidays?" she asks. "Well, I'm the only one in town who's left."

.

"So you stayed with me in the hospital for a week and took me home with you?" he asks, amazed by her generosity and ability to look past his mistreatment of her to help him.

.

"Nobody else wanted you" she smiles coldly.

.

He looks down at his clothes and grins. "I notice I am in a Donna Summer concert tour T-shirt".

.

She smirks. "I know how much you_ love_ concert T's."

.

He starts to laugh, then immediately winces in pain. She jumps up to get him two pain tablets and a glass of water.

.

"Here, take these" she hands them to him.

.

"Weird to get high legally. Want to join me?" he asks, offering her one of his two pills.

.

"One of us should probably stay conscious" she tells him.

.

"Where's my bullet?" he asks, trying to look down.

.

She lifts the edge of his shirt and exposes his hipbone. "It went in right there. It was lodged in your hip. The cops have it in an evidence baggie right now."

.

"Wow" he exhales in disbelief. "I'm really lucky. That could have killed me if it were any higher" he notes seriously.

.

"That's what your doctor said" she confirms.

.

"Jackie. Can I ask you a personal question?" he wonders.

.

She pretends to check her nails, not wanting to be put n the spot. "Go ahead."

.

"Am I wearing underwear?" he cocks his head to the side.

.

She gingerly lifts the edge of the sheet and then drops it suddenly. "Do you even own underwear?"

.

"No, but under the circumstances, I should probably be wearing something, right? Wouldn't want your boyfriend to get the wrong idea." he ventures, trying to collect intel.

.

"That's cool" she says as she stands up. She can certainly out Zen him in his condition.

.

His face drops. "Hey wait! Where are you going?"

.

"Just getting you some soup before the drugs make you pass out again" she assures him as she continues out of the room.

.

"Hey, Jackie!" he shouts, causing her to turn around once again.

.

"Thanks" he says with a tentative smile.

.

* * *

.

_**December 20, 1981**_

.

Donna, clad in a solid red bikini, is sunbathing on a lounge chair on the deck of the ship. Her eyes are closed and she has an open book resting on her stomach.

.

Eric walks over and removes the book from her belly, which stirs her from her sleep. "I wouldn't want you to have the world's craziest tan line."

.

She smiles at him as she cat stretches. "You're the only one who sees my belly anyway."

.

"Yeah, and that's why 'I wouldn't want you to have the world's craziest tan line'," he grins at her upside down.

.

"You're an idiot." She grabs his shirt and pulls him toward her mouth for an upside down kiss.

.

Eric sits at the end of the lounge chair and starts to rub her feet. "This hasn't exactly been the trip we planned, huh?"

.

"Well, it's kind of tough to have a blast when one of your family members gets mugged and shot" she rationalizes.

.

"Yeah. Good thing Jackie is still in town, right?" he remarks. "Though...awkward!" he sings.

.

"Seriously. I wonder how that's going" she shakes her head. "Something tells me Hyde is the world's worst patient, and Jackie isn't exactly known for her high tolerance. It makes me sort of glad we're separated by a large body of water."

.

"Who knows? Maybe this will finally be the thing that brings them together?" Eric suggests optimistically. "It's not like either of them is dating anybody right now."

.

"Not sure cleaning somebody's wound is really romantic, but stranger things have happened" she adjusts her chair to a sitting position. "Not that it would matter though, with her upcoming move and all."

.

"Yeah, but I'll bet she's back in six months. I mean, who's gonna watch a channel that just plays music all day. Isn't that what the radio is for?" he scoffs.

.

Donna pulls the rubber band out of her hair and shakes it loose. "I don't know, Eric. I'd watch it. They're going to play music videos. Kind of seems cool to put music over a little movie. Kind of like Laser Zeppelin."

.

"Guess I'm a traditionalist" he shrugs.

.

"You can say that again" she says with an edge as she puts a straw hat on.

.

Eric feels himself getting irritated. "I get it. You don't want to marry me. Believe me, you won't have to worry about me asking you again."

.

She lets out an exasperated sigh. "I didn't say I would _never_ marry you. I just don't want to get married any time in the near future. I mean, I still have grad school to attend and I want a career. Why do we have to get married? What's the rush? It's not like I'm not giving the milk away."

.

"I'm not with you just for your...milk. I mean, don't get me wrong, I really love milk, it just seems like every time I bring it up you get this look, like I'm some ugly dude hitting on you at a bar and you're looking for the nearest exit" he says.

.

She places her hands on either side of Eric's face. "You are not some ugly dude hitting on me at a bar. We are clearly at a beach club right now" she deadpans.

.

He pulls her hands roughly from his face and walks away.

.

"Eric, I'm kidding! Come on! You used to have a sense of humor!" she calls after him.

.

"That didn't go so well, did it, kiddo?" Bob says as he walks over from the tiki bar area carrying a Mai Thai.

.

"Ugh, Daddy, he just doesn't understand" she pouts.

.

"I think I don't understand either" he says as he takes the seat next to her. "Don't you want to marry Eric?"

.

"It's not that I don't want to marry him, it's just I don't know if I want to get married at all" she admits cautiously, hoping he doesn't ask too many follow-up questions.

.

"Is this about me and your mom?" he wonders.

.

"More like just about mom" she tells him.

.

"Aw Donna, your mom and I got married really young and we didn't know who we wanted to be or what we wanted out of life back then." he explains.

.

"She still doesn't" the redhead rolls her eyes.

.

"We just weren't right for each other. I loved Midgie very much, but love only gets you half way there," he warns her, hoping that his words sink in.

.

"But what if I'm not done figuring out who I want to be? I'm just worried I'll turn out like her" she sighs. "I love mom, but she always treated me like more of a friend than a daughter. I don't want to do that to my kids" she laments.

.

"You and your mom are different people, kiddo. She was never as smart or as strong as you are. Neither of us were. Don't throw away a chance to be happy just because you're scared it won't work out, but also don't do anything you're not ready for or it'll eventually push you guys apart" he wraps his arm around his daughter and kisses the top of her head.

.

"Thanks daddy" she kisses his cheek.

.

"Anytime, pumpkin" he smiles with tears in his eyes.

.

* * *

.

Hyde drifts in and out of consciousness, picking up little bits and pieces of conversations and sounds.

.

Jackie is on the phone in the kitchen with Eric. "She didn't mean it" she insists calmly while twisting the curly phone cord around her finger.

.

"I know, but she says shit like this all the time. I go to her therapy sessions once a month and she still doesn't seem to budge. Isn't there a point where I should just learn to take the hint?" he wonders.

.

"Don't give up on her. She wants to be with you, she's just scared. I mean, you had such a great example of marriage to follow, but her experience has been different, you know?" she sighs, rubbing her forehead. "She doesn't trust her own instincts."

.

He drums his hands on the phone booth glass. "You're right. I know. I guess if I had Bob and Midge for parents I wouldn't be rushing into marriage either" he admits. "I just feel like she keeps it all inside and never talks to me about what she's going through and then we fight over the stupidest crap."

.

"Talk to her. No wait, get her a little drunk and then talk to her. Also, get your ass back on board that ship before you end up with a head full of cornrows, Forman" she teases. "Trust me, if you have hair on your head they will find you and braid you. There is no escape. They are Tusken Raiders" she giggles.

.

Hyde's eyes open as he listens to Jackie laugh. He always loved her laugh, but he hasn't heard it in years, at least not one of her genuine, from the gut laughs like she's doing now. He lets the sound permeate his foggy head and smiles, wondering who the lucky person is who is making her feel this way.

.

"Hang in there, okay? And tell everybody I say hi." she makes him promise.

.

"I will padawan. Don't let Hyde's constant complaining turn you to the dark side." he pleads.

.

"I think it's a little late for that, don't you?" She giggles again. "You're a dork, but I love you anyway, okay?"

.

"Well, you're a bitch, but I love you too. Merry Christmas!" he wishes her before hanging up the phone.

.

She smiles as she wanders into the bedroom to check on Hyde.

.

"Who was that on the phone?" he wonders.

.

"Oh! You're up. Good. You haven't eaten in a while, so I'll go get you something. You need to eat to get better. That's what Kitty told me to tell you" she informs him.

.

"Were you talking to Donna?" he asks.

.

"Um, no. That was Eric" she smiles at the memory of their chat.

.

"You and Forman say 'I love you' to each other?" he questions, finding the whole scenario unbelievable on many fronts.

.

"Yep. Real men don't have an issue telling women they love them" she says, following it up with a closed-mouth smile.

.

"Forman is a real man?" Hyde snorts.

.

Jackie's face drops. "You tease him an awful lot and I don't really want you doing it in front of me, because then I'll have to kick your ass and I'm supposed to be helping you get better, not worse." she warns him.

.

When he realizes she means business, his face softens. "Fine. He's too easy of a target anyway, so it's not even worth the effort."

.

A minor win now under her belt, Jackie smiles smugly to herself.

.

As Hyde watches her walk toward the kitchen, he can't help but notice the way her skirt clings to her ass as she moves. Time has certainly been kind to Jackie Burkhart, he notes. On the outside, at least. The inside is an entirely different story. A hard shell seems to have formed around her heart since the last time he saw her. This variant of Jackie seems way less likely to dissolve into a puddle of tears when faced with one of his more brutal burns. He's not even sure that this Jackie would respond with anything more than a shrug and a smile.

.

"You're going to love me when you see what I brought you to eat—oh wait! You don't love. My bad" she says with snark as she places a tray of food in front of him.

.

His eyes light up when he sees what she's gotten him. "I might make an exception since you brought me a cheeseburger" he exclaims as he eagerly unwraps it.

.

She smiles genuinely as she watches him scarf it down. He acting slightly like a jerk, but that must mean he's getting slightly better, she surmises.

.

Almost at the end of the burger in less than two minutes, Hyde looks up and connects with her gaze. "I needed this, so...thanks."

.

"I'm just glad you have an appetite. Those pain pills don't just take away the pain, they take away everything. You've been sleeping for two days" she frowns.

.

"Yeah, that reminds me. I was wondering, um, if I could take a bath" he asks shyly as he finishes the food.

.

Her brows knit. "I don't think you can take a bath, because you're not supposed to submerge the wound. You could try a shower, I guess, but you're going to need to sit in it or have somebody help you while you're in there" she regrets it almost immediately after the words leave her lips.

.

Hyde smirks. "There are easier way for you to get to see me naked, doll."

.

"I've already seen you naked Steven. Who do you think gave you a sponge bath the first day you got here?" she smirks back.

.

He chuckles. "Alright. Let's do this then."

.

"Now?" her eyes widen.

.

"No time like the present" he suggests.

.

She hesitates for a moment until she realizes she is out of options. "Fine" she grumbles.

.

* * *

.

Now wearing the most conservative swimwear she owns - a hot pink bikini – Jackie walks into her bedroom with her business face on.

.

Hyde looks up at his ex and immediately clenches his jaw to avoid having his tongue fall out of his mouth like a drooling idiot. Jesus, she knows how to wear a swimsuit. He silently thanks the makers of Percocet for creating flaccidity as a possible side effect of their painkiller.

.

"Okay. Let's do this," she says as she approaches his bedside. "Can you raise your arms and lock them around my neck?"

.

Hyde nods and attempts to follow instructions. She grabs him under his arms and joins them around his back and lifts gently.

.

"Argh" he grunts in pain as she pulls him to his feet.

.

"Believe me, it's not easy on my end either, I think you're twice my weight. You'll be okay once you're on your feet" she soothes as she tries to steady his legs.

.

Hyde grits his teeth and breathes through the pain. "This may have been a terrible mistake."

.

"You're doing great, baby, I'm going to get you there" she says, realizing shortly afterward that she's called him one of their old nicknames. The combination of calling him baby and being in such close proximity to each other has subtly changed the energy in the room and they're both suddenly very aware of each other's bodies.

.

Hyde wonders if it's possible to be in both heaven and hell at the same time. On one hand, the pain is excruciating and it's taking all self-control not to collapse sobbing into fetal position, but on the other hand with his arm around her bare skin, and his face planted in her berry-scented hair, he's reached nirvana.

.

The arrive at the shower and she leans him against the towel rack, which he grabs onto for support.

.

"Jesus, it's cold in here!" she exclaims as she turns on the hot tap and waits for it to warm up.

.

"Um...I have a question" he says, "it's a detail really."

.

She gestures for him to keep talking.

.

"What am I going to wear in the shower? I mean, I know this shirt needs to be washed, but you'd probably rather send it out to be laundered, right?" he questions.

.

Her face freezes in panicked thought. "Oh. Um, I can help you take your shirt off" she offers.

.

"What about my pants?" he asks, referencing the Walmart purchase she made the day before for him.

.

"You're going commando, aren't you?" she sighs, her mouth forming a flat line.

.

"I can't go in wearing sweatpants" he maintains. "Believe me, even if I wanted to seduce you, I'm not in the mood" he says, hoping to ease her concern.

.

She wonders what he means by 'if I wanted to seduce you'. What does he mean 'if'? No, she doesn't want him to seduce her, but he can at least have the decency to pretend that he wants to. She's hot. Everybody wants to seduce her, she thinks as she gets more and more annoyed.

.

"I guess it's fine to take them off. It's not like you'd have any luck succeeding anyway in your condition" she miffs, passive-aggressively.

.

Hyde narrows his eyes. No luck seducing a woman? Yeah right. He could do that with _two_ bullet holes in his body. Is he really so repulsive to her that stripping down in front of her wouldn't affect her? Is she really _that_ over him? He hadn't really planned on trying to work her up, but now he's feeling tempted to, just to prove a point.

.

She leans in and shifts the lever to the shower mode and fine-tunes the temperature.

.

"Okay, it's ready" she breathes, trying to hide her apprehension.

.

She gently lifts the T-shirt off of his body and throws it to the ground, exposing his bare chest to her now. She licks her lips and looks down at his pants. "Can you, um, turn around or something?" she teeters nervously.

.

He smirks and painfully shifts his body away from her.

.

She kneels behind him and slowly slides his sweatpants down, trying hard to avert her eyes from his naked behind. She closes them for a moment and takes a deep breath, realizing what a horrible, awful idea it was to agree to this.

.

"This feels familiar" he jokes as she helps him step out of the sweatpants.

.

"Don't push it Hyde!" she warns sternly as she gets off of her knees and stands up to face him.

.

"You used to have a better sense of humor" he grins.

.

"That's before I realized that with you, the joke was usually on me" she mumbles quietly, making him feel suddenly very ashamed.

.

"Hey" he says as she wraps his arms around her neck again. "I'm really sorry about what an asshole I was to you. I didn't mean any of it" he earnestly confesses.

.

She nods ambiguously as she opens the door to the shower and helps him lumber in.

.

Warm water rains down on both of them, wetting her bikini and instantly revealing the outline of her erect nipples. He catches a glimpse and is nearly knocked off balance, prompting her to pull him closer to her chest to prevent him from falling.

.

"Can you stand on your own for a moment while I get the soap?" she wonders.

.

He nods and leans sideways against the wall.

.

She pours some liquid bath soap onto a washcloth and lathers it up. "It's lavender" she shrugs apologetically as she loops his arms back around her neck. As he hugs her tightly for support, she reaches around and rubs the washcloth in gentle circles on his back, eliciting a soft moan from her patient.

.

"That feels good" he breathes, speaking into the crook of her neck, making her nearly dizzy with want for him.

.

Shit. She tells herself to get it together. He's a sick friend and you're just washing him off, much like a car. She closes her eyes and enjoys the sensation of her fingers gliding over his naked back.

.

She continues on and cleans both of his arms, which should be neutral territory, but he's gotten stronger since they were last together and his now-larger biceps are distracting her.

.

"How are going to handle cleaning, the, um, your..." she's flustered now and is losing track of her words like a person with a head injury.

.

"Are you referring to my penis" she can feel him smiling into the side of her neck, amused with her discomfort.

.

She puffs out a small burst of nervous laughter. "Yeah. That."

.

"If you can take my weight for a minute, I'll take care of it myself" he grins.

.

She pours some more soap onto the washcloth and hands it to him. "Have at it" she smiles.

.

Hyde leans heavily on Jackie's shoulders as he reaches his hand down between his legs. She tries to look away, but in her peripheral vision she observes him lathering up, almost stroking himself rhythmically and it's making her insides hot.

.

"Are you finished down there yet?" she asks as her cheeks flush crimson.

.

He hands her the washcloth and smiles. "All clean."

.

"What about the back?" she asks.

.

"Can't reach" he responds.

.

She takes a deep breath and gives him a look of disbelief.

.

"I can't twist my body, Jackie. If I were going to trick you into washing one of my body parts, I would have picked the front, you know?" he scowls with faux-exasperation.

.

"Fine" she snaps curtly as she rinses the cloth and adds fresh soap. She pulls him toward her torso again and reaches behind him to wash his butt. As she lathers him up, the cloth slips from her hand and her bare hand sweeps across his naked ass. She leaves it there for a second too long and then snatches it back as if it were on fire.

.

He breathes heavily against her neck, causing her body to erupt in goosebumps everywhere. She pours a dollop of shampoo onto her hand and runs it through his hair, scratching his scalp the way he likes it as she washes his hair. He leans back to let the water rinse the soap away, and she presses her body against his to help comb it all out with her fingers.

.

"Almost done" she pants, almost shivering.

.

"Are you cold?" he asks with concern as he tugs her under the warm water. She sighs loudly as her skin is reheated by the steady stream of heat and she rolls her neck from side to side. She's never looked more beautiful to him than at this very moment. Both wet and exhausted, she still glows like the moon under a clear Summer sky. He runs one hand up and down her right arm and then her left.

.

Her eyes are closed like a statue's and a pained ambivalence is written clearly across her features. He wishes he felt ambivalent, but he's absolutely sure of how he feels for her and has been since the day she left for Chicago. Years may have passed and other lovers may have drifted in and out of both their lives, but when he closes his eyes at night and has trouble sleeping, it's her face that he always sees.

.

She opens her eyes and reaches for the soap again, pouring just a tiny dot in the middle of her palm before rubbing her hands together to build a lather. She reaches up and gently slides her fingertips over Hyde's cheeks and nose and forehead, then pulls him under the water with her to wash it all off.

.

As his body moves against her own, she can feel the evidence of his naked arousal against her unclad stomach and it makes her shudder. Her eyes begin to tear and she prays that the water from above will help mask her silent, emotional outburst.

.

Knowing her as well as he does, Hyde senses it right away and frowns. He rubs his thumb back and forth over her quivering bottom lip and whispers "I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry" over and over again like a Hail Mary.

.

She reaches behind her and shuts the water off, effectively ending the conversation.

.

**A/N – did I frustrate you? (evil laugh) I'll get you there, Zennie. They will not ride off into the sunset immediately-but will get there eventually :)**

**.**

**Please keep those reviews coming!**


	14. Chapter 14

**This chapter is rated M for sMut. You can find it in the Eric/Donna scene, so if you're uncomfortable with that stuff, then skip the end of that section.**

**.**

**CHAPTER 14**

.

Sitting on the edge of the bed in a towel, Hyde watches Jackie move around the bedroom collecting clothes for him. She pulls another pair of black sweatpants from the Walmart bag, rips the tag off with her teeth and tosses them to him.

.

She then rummages through her bottom drawer and produces a tank top from ABBA's "Voulez-Vous" album tour.

.

Hyde lifts the shirt, takes one look and raises an eyebrow.

.

"You're welcome to bend over and look through that bottom drawer for something you like better" she says flatly.

.

He stares her down, then slowly and painfully dons the shirt. "I can even make ABBA cool."

.

"Well, I for one, am loving what you do for that shirt" she smiles evilly.

.

"Yeah, just you wait until you get shot by a drug addict and see which t-shirts I make you wear" he taunts.

.

She laughs. "I think we both know you wouldn't be taking care of me if I got shot" she remarks as she finishes putting on her shoes.

.

His face gets serious. "You really don't think I'd take care of you if you were hurt?"

.

"I really don't" she says calmly. "But you know what, it doesn't matter. I'm doing this for Kitty" she assures herself and him as she puts her coat on.

.

"Where are you going?" he wonders.

.

"Does it matter, Hyde?" she asks, exasperatedly.

.

He starts to get angry. "Can you tell me what's going in here please? Was it the shower? I thought things were fine, but now you're acting all mental."

.

"You thought things were fine?" she laughs. "Whatever" she mumbles as she grabs her keys from the dresser.

.

"Jackie!" he says sternly.

.

"Look, I'm doing my good deed for the holidays, okay? Can we just keep things simple and avoid chit chat?" she questions.

.

"I think we need to talk" he suggests.

.

She looks at him and shakes her head sadly. "Talking is for people who have something in common, Steven. I'll be back in an hour. The phone is near your head if you need to call an ambulance while I'm gone." she informs him.

.

She leaves the house and closes the door behind her, then slumps against the outside of it crying.

.

* * *

.

Jackie walks to the nearest payphone, pulls a number from her address book and dials.

.

It rings four times, and just as she's about to hang up, a familiar voice answers. "Hello?"

.

She smiles in thanks. "Hi" she answers.

.

The phone jostles a bit like the person is moving to the next room and then they hover close to the receiver. "Is this Jackie?"

.

She starts crying with happiness and wipes a tear from her eye. "Yes".

.

"I never thought I'd hear from you again" he says.

.

"I was too ashamed to call you" she responds.

.

"I'm ashamed too" he admits. "The way I treated you was...I'm so sorry."

.

She laughs through her tears. "I'll forgive you if you forgive me" she offers.

.

"You've got a deal, goddess" Fez smiles as he closes his eyes in relief.

.

"It's good to hear your voice" she sighs, happy for the first time in days. "It's been a rough week."

.

He nods to himself. "I've heard" he bites his thumb nervously. "So you're doing it then? You're actually taking care of that bastard?"

.

Her breath catches. "Yep."

.

"That's got to be weird" he guesses.

.

"Understatement of the century" she exhales. "Look, it's the holidays and I don't want to keep you. I just needed...I just wanted to hear your voice."

.

"I miss you princess" he ventures.

.

She smiles widely as tears fall from her eyes. "I miss you too, Fezzy. More than you know. Do you think I could call you sometime?"

.

"Of course you can. Look, Jackie, you should know something. I was upset back then but it wasn't a shock. I knew you didn't love me, not the way I wanted you to. I'm not angry anymore, okay? I just miss my best friend" he confesses to her.

.

Now crying hard, she tries to calm down to speak. "I really love you, okay? And I am so sorry if I hurt you. Believe me, you're the absolute last person I ever wanted to hurt" she sobs.

.

"I know my darling Jacqueline. We're okay. Just tell me what's going on. Is he being a prick?" he questions.

.

She shakes her head. "No actually. He's being nice. He wants to talk about what happened, but I just can't. And I...I still have all of these feelings. So much time has passed that I didn't think I would, you know, but I do" she says, spilling her guts.

.

"He doesn't deserve your feelings - or your forgiveness. He's being greedy, what you're doing for him is enough," he insists.

.

The phone beeps asking for another $1.20 for the next three minutes.

.

"Shit! Fez I'm on a payphone and I'm out of change, but I'll call you from home soon" she tells him.

.

"Promise?" he asks, holding her to it.  
.

"You bet" she smiles as it disconnects her and she hangs up the phone while wiping her nose.

.

* * *

.

Jackie walks back into her apartment two hours later carrying a small Christmas tree and stand and a bag of decorations.

.

Hyde sits up slowly as he hears her walk in and tries to peek around the partition. "Jackie?"

.

"Yeah. It's me" she says as she drops everything on the floor.

.

"Are you okay?" he asks with concern.

.

"Yep. I'm good" she tilts her head around the corner to see him.

.

He sees her cheeks flushed from the cold and her rumpled hat hair and smiles. Even when she's a mess she's adorable. Especially when she's a mess, actually. He can't deny how hot she looks when she's ready for a night out on the town, but when she's just rolled out of bed and she's tooling around the city in her snow pants and mukluks, she's the world's sexiest little ragamuffin.

.

"I got a tree" she smiles enthusiastically. "I wasn't going to bother for just me, but I figured since you're here...I mean, the Formans aren't coming home until New Years, so I'm afraid you're going to have to wait out Christmas with me."

.

"I always liked our Christmases together" he says remembering their sex marathons and Chinese take-away. "I wish I could help you set it up the tree" he grimaces as he tries to sit up straighter.

.

"Don't move! It's okay. This one's only 5 ft. so I've got an inch or two on it. She lifts the tree and drags the edge into view. "I'm going to set it up now. Just let me know when you want dinner."

.

"You're cooking?" he asks curiously.

.

"Ha. There's a Jewish deli down the street and I bought you some chicken soup with matzoh balls" she chuckles.

.

Hyde scoots to the edge of the bed to watch Jackie erect the tree. In theory, she shouldn't be able to lift something so large, but being as resourceful as an ant, Jackie sets it up easily.

.

If he squints hard enough, Hyde can almost pretend this is their home together and a normal Christmas for the two of them, other than the fact that he's been shot and she hates his guts.

.

She spends 30 more minutes trimming the tree and then turns the lights on. "It doesn't really look that great unless the overhead lights are off" she says turning off the living room lights and then the ones in the alcove bedroom before sitting next to Hyde on the bed.

.

Her hair is in a messy pony tail now and he stares longingly at the side of her neck. She turns to him and wrinkles her brow. "What?"

.

"It's beautiful" he says, clearly referring to her and not the tree.

.

She smiles placidly at him, leans back next to him on the pillow and rests for the new few minutes.

.

"I miss you" he whispers under his breath, just loud enough for her to hear.

.

"I think maybe you hit your head harder than they thought" she says calmly, refusing to turn her head to the right to face him.

.

"Don't do that, Jackie" he sighs.

.

"Steven, I just don't want to talk about it." she shakes her head no. "There's nothing to say."

.

"Fine" he snaps.

.

"Come on. I think you're just injured and confused. Maybe you need to eat something" she suggests.

.

"I was confused then. I'm not now." he insists.

.

"Steven, I've had a long day, will you'll just drop it" she pleads while staring at the ceiling.

.

He fists ball up. "Fine. But we're not done with this."

.

She closes her eyes and wishes to God that they were.

.

* * *

.

Eric knocks a few times at his cabin door, then opens it. "I didn't realize it was unlocked."

.

Donna, reading a book, refuses to look up. "I wasn't sure when you were planning on coming back, so I figured I should leave it open for you."

.

He sighs and grabs the end of her foot and squeezes. "I'm sorry I ran off, I was pissed and just needed a little space."

.

She places the book next to her and meets his gaze. "I'm sorry too. I know I'm confusing you a lot lately...or always, but I guess it's just because I'm so confused about things myself."

.

He nods. "Yeah. I see that now."

.

"What? Did you call Jackie about it or something?" she asks with a slight edge to her voice.

.

"I did actually" he admits. "She helped me to see your side of things."

.

"She's always doing that, isn't she?" she sighs.

.

"That upsets you?" he wonders incredulously.

.

"No Eric. It's not about that. It's just...why are you always going to her with all of our problems?" she wants to know.

.

"You used to to the exact same thing" he counters.

.

"Yeah, when we were kids! I don't know. I guess I just wish you would come to me with your complaints and not her" she remarks sadly.

.

He looks at his beautiful girlfriend and notices for the first time how vulnerable she is to his whims. "You're right, Donna. I should be talking to you about this stuff and not her - -and I will, from now on. I promise."

.

The corners of her mouth turn up slightly as she lowers her eyes. "That means a lot. Thanks." She leans over to the ashtray next to her and re-lights a joint she smoked half of earlier.

.

He slides in next to her on the bed and places his head on her pillow. "It's kind of funny how every time we argue it seems to be about a stupid ring. We don't do so well with rings, huh? Maybe we should try a bracelet?" he smiles as he takes her hand, she holds the joint to his lips with the other hand for him to take a drag.

.

"I guess you're right. The promise ring incident was a fun several months. Oh and there's the infamous man-ring, which I still think is stunning, by the way" she chuckles. "And of course, there's the first engagement ring with the .025 carat center stone, paid for by Jackie." She takes another puff.

.

"I made up for it though, didn't I?" he asks.

.

She smiles. "Yes you did" she lifts her hand to check out the new ring.

.

His brow raises. "You're wearing it?" he asks hopefully.

.

"I'm...just seeing how it feels" she admits. "I'm still not sure about marriage."

.

He turns to face her and strokes the side of her face. "Look, I love you. You know how I feel about getting married, but I'm not going to be that same idiot who broke up with you because you wanted to wear the promise ring around your neck instead of your finger. I don't want to keep making the same mistakes over and over again, hoping to have a different outcome."

.

She giggles. "That's the definition of insanity, you know" she says turning to him, before letting him shotgun the rest of her drag.

.

He exhales. "Well, it wouldn't be the first time you accused me of that" he says smirking.

.

"Eric, I want to marry you so badly, but I just...this has nothing to do with you, okay? There's nobody else I would even consider marrying. I just have to get through my own shit before I can do it, you know?" she looks into his eyes, hoping for a glimmer of understanding.

.

"I'll wait for you, Donna. I mean, I've waited 15 years, so what's another...year?" he shrugs.

.

"Four" she suggests.

.

He scoffs. "I'd like to still have a full head of hair at my wedding."

.

"How about we meet in the middle and say twoish?" she asks.

.

He thinks for a minute and takes a pull of the joint. "I can do twoish, as long as you wear the ring the whole time and don't make me wait until marriage to have sex like you did the last time."

.

The statuesque beauty laughs hard then takes the last drag of the roach before stubbing it out. "What the hell was I thinking?"

.

"Seriously. It must have been absolute torture for you to deprive yourself of all of this" he gestures to his lanky physique.

.

"It was" she coos as she wraps her arms around his neck. "I happen to like all of this" she looks him up and down.

.

"Yeah? How much?" he grins, his green eyes flashing dangerously.

.

She runs her finger down the front of Eric's shirt, flicking the buttons open as she goes, then opens it, exposing his newly-suntanned chest.

.

"Very. Very. Much." she tells him, punctuating each word with a kiss to his chest.

.

He holds her face with both hands and plants a gentle kiss on her lips that quickly turns heated. He pulls the string of her bikini top, exposing her breasts and works his way down.

.

Donna runs her fingers through his hair and moans softly as he teases her nipples with his mouth. She's never been with anybody else this way except Casey Kelso, and he never made her feel like this. Oh, and there was also Randy, but the fact that she has to keep reminding herself she was even with him only highlights how forgettable it was. Maybe she was just one of those few lucky ones who meets their perfect match without having to slog through a series of bad boyfriends. Unlike most girls her age, she craves stability not excitement. Excitement is for a job not a partner.

.

A partner needs to make you feel warm and safe, and Eric does that in spades. He also gives her butterflies, makes her laugh more than anyone else and tries to please her more than she has a right to ask.

.

He peppers her belly with kisses and makes his way back up to her face. "Has anybody ever told you before how sexy your bellybutton is?"

.

"Uh just you, every time you see me naked" she replies.

.

He yanks down her swimsuit bottom and makes gentle circles with his fingers on her core, which speeds her breathing up and makes her flush all over. One of the curses of being a redhead is never being able to hide your arousal, not that she'd ever want to with him, but it makes for an interesting family brunch after an early morning 'wake up' call.

.

She grabs him by the hair and crashes her lips on to his, as she slides down his swim trunks with her feet and begins to stroke his erection, which has been pressing up against her like a pleasant reminder.

.

He kisses and sucks his way down her neck to her collarbone and then whispers in her ear "We're total badasses. We're doing it on a boat."

.

She perks up. "I know! Right? We're like Mick Jagger!" she giggles.

.

Eric smirks and starts singing in his 'sexy Mick Jagger' voice "I can't get no...satisfaction. I can't get no..girl reaction..."

.

Donna laughs again as he rolls on top of her and enters her slowly.

.

* * *

.

Hyde and Jackie lean against the couch while sitting on the floor finishing dinner.

.

"Ah yes. The traditional eating of the matzoh ball soup in front of the Christmas tree" Hyde jokes as he finishes his bowl and puts it aside. "Hey, at least religion got two things right."

.

She smiles then twists her bottom lip nervously. "I can probably attempt eggs or something if you're still hungry" she offers.

.

"No, it's alright. I still don't have much of an appetite from the painkillers" he says.

.

"Oh" she responds, before allowing an uncomfortable silence to fall upon the room.

.

Hyde feels frustration building in his core and does all he can to keep it from igniting his bad side.

.

"I can put on music" she suggests, feeling self-conscious from the lack of ambient noise. She stands up and retrieve's Hyde's bowl, then drops them both on the table as she heads for the 8-Track player.

.

"I don't know how I feel about you playing DJ" he snarks.

.

"How about I give you veto rights?" she offers.

.

"I can live with that, as long as you can live with me vetoing half of your collection" he explains as he catches a glimpse of a Saturday Night Fever soundtrack tape. "Make that two-thirds."

.

She rolls her eyes. "Please. Ever stop to consider that you may be the one with bad taste?"

.

"How do you figure?" he asks, cocking his head toward her.

.

"Well, considering I just got a job working for MTV as a correspondent, I think I might just have some authority on the matter" she brags.

.

"The new music channel that's starting up?" he questions, impressed with her accomplishment. "That's amazing, Jackie" he exclaims with a proud smile.

.

"Um, thank you" she responds, caught off guard by his naked display of kindness.

.

The song "Woman" by John Lennon starts playing.

.

_**Woman, I can hardly express**__**  
**__**My mixed emotions and my thoughtlessness**__**  
**__**After all, I'm forever in your debt**_

.

Hyde looks up at her quizzically.

.

"December 8th. He was shot the same day a year ago as you. Or vice versa, I guess" she says sadly. "I thought you might want..."

.

"I do" he assures her. "I didn't realize it until you pointed it out" he admits.

.

He looks at her for a moment, pissed that she acted so surprised to hear him compliment her, but touched by her Lennon tribute. How Jackie manages to provoke all of his different emotions at all times is beyond his understanding.

.

Was he really such a jerk that she's shocked to hear him say something pleasant to her? Then he remembers New Year's Eve, and realizes that he was.

.

_**And woman, **_

_**I will try to express**_

_**My inner feelings and thankfulness**_

_**For showing me the meaning of success**_

.

"Look, I know you don't want to talk about our problems or anything like that, but can you at least let me apologize for being the world's biggest asshole to you on New year's Eve? Please?" he pleads with her.

.

She takes a deep breath. "Fine, we can talk about just that night and nothing else. Certainly not Chicago or our relationship or Sa...your whore. Okay?"

.

He nods. "I was drunk and feeling lousy. I knew I was the one who had fucked everything up but I was having a tough time admitting to myself, you know? So I just lashed out at you, I guess."

.

Her brow furrows. "You're actually admitting you screwed things up?" she asks, shocked.

.

"I didn't mean any of those things I said to you. Not one of them" he insists.

.

"Then why'd you say them?" she wonders. "You really messed me up. That was just...I've never even had anybody who hates me talk to me like that, much less somebody who once...liked me."

.

"I didn't just like you, Jackie" he looks at her pointedly.

.

_**Ooh, well, well, doo doo doo doo doo**_

_**Ooh, well, well, doo doo doo doo doo**_

.

"Well, I can only read into the things you say Steven, not the things you don't" she looks at him sadly.

.

"I know. I'm sorry, doll. I really am" he says sincerely, with labored breathing, She can tell that moving him from the bed to the other room has taken a lot out of him and this conversation's only taking more.

.

She nods. "Are you finished now? If I forgive you for that night can we just move on and never speak about it again?"

.

That isn't what he wants, but he's not in any position to bargain. He shrugs. "If you're done, you're done, I guess. I just wanted you to know how bad I felt about it, and it's not just because you're taking care of me. I felt like this before, you get it?"

.

Despite her desire to remain zen, the corners of her mouth curl up. "Yeah. I get it."

.

_**Woman, I know you understand the little child inside a man**__**  
**__**Please remember, my life is in your hands**_

.

She kneels down by his side and places the back of her hand on his forehead to check for a temperature.

.

"Are you feeling okay?" she inquires, concerned by his ragged breaths.

.

He looks up into her eyes and he's in paradise. Her velvety skin is touching his face and she's so close he could reach up and kiss her. She's everywhere around him and it's intoxicating.

.

_**And woman**__**  
**__**Hold me close to your heart, however distant don't keep us apart**__**  
**__**After all it is written in the stars**_

.

"You sound like a pervert, Steven. Why is your breathing so heavy?" she wonders, debating whether or not to phone Kitty.

.

"Part of it could be the fact that I've been shot" he shrugs, mocking her. "Or maybe I am a pervert."

.

She scowls. "It's not funny. You look like you're suffering. Did you- - you didn't take the pain pills I gave you." she accuses angrily.

.

"Man, I just don't like being that out of it unless it's by choice. Plus, they made me groggy and I'd kind of prefer being awake, you know?" he admits as he rubs his head.

.

"I'm not going to be able to move you back to the bed if you don't take something" she warns.

.

"That's okay. It wouldn't be the first time I slept on the floor" he remarks flippantly.

.

"No. It's not okay. You have to take something" she insists.

.

"Well, unfortunately I don't have my stash here on the account that I didn't plan to get shot and all" he winces as he shifts his weight.

.

"Stay right here" she orders firmly as she crosses to her stereo and rummages through her 8-track collection.

.

_**Ooh, well, well, doo doo doo doo doo**_

_**Ooh, well, well, doo doo doo doo doo**_

.

"I don't think Sergio Mendes is gonna cure what ails me Jackie, but if you have Santana...?" he stops short as she approaches him carrying a baggie of weed.

.

"Huh" he nods approvingly. "And here I thought that I corrupted you."

.

"You can't corrupt what's already spoiled" she says as she quickly rolls out a joint and lights it for him, pulling a huge drag and holding it in her lungs.

.

She hold the cigarette aloft for him to take a puff. He places one hand on top of hers and slips his mouth over the end of the joint, his lips pressing up against her fingers softly, his blue eyes looking directly into her own, making her swoon.

.

_**Woman, please let me explain**__**  
**__**I never meant to cause you sorrow or pain**__**  
**__**So let me tell you again and again and again**_

.

Jackie closes her eyes and exhales.

.

Her world starts going fuzzy almost immediately. The weed is strong and she can feel herself relaxing into the high. "Is it good?" she asks as she takes another long drag.

.

He exhales and leans in for another. "It's perfect."

.

Jackie leans up against the couch next to Hyde and smiles. "Remember how many hours we used to spend in the basement getting high and listening to music?" she recalls fondly. "I think I spent my entire senior year of high school doing that" she laughs softly in her reverie.

.

He remember one other thing they used to do in the basement a lot while they were high. His insides stir at her proximity. He's so close to her now that he can smell her skin and her hair and feel her arm rubbing up against his as her body shakes with laughter. He puts the joint out in the ashtray.

.

"I feel really old. Like I've lived way too much" she frowns and looks at him.

.

He runs his fingers gently down the side of her face and lightly back and forth over her lips. "I hate to see you sad, dollface."

.

She nods. "Me too."

.

He leans toward her and lets his lips touch hers. Tentatively at first, but then with hunger and want. He pulls the elastic band out of her hair and runs both hands through her chocolate curls. Hyde pushes past the pain and eagerly strains closer, letting his lips glide over and under hers with the pent up passion of a man deprived for two years of the one thing he wants most in this world.

.

_**I love you, yeah, yeah, yeah, now and forever**__**  
**__**I love you, yeah, yeah, yeah, now and forever**_

.

**A/N – Sappy! There's going to be another time jump in a bit.**

**.**

**Please review!**


	15. Chapter 15

**CHAPTER 15**

.

If there's anything Jackie Burkhart knows well, it's self-deprivation. Being a cheerleader and a fad diet specialist, she has tried just about everything under the sun. She gave up carbs one summer, dairy the next, she even gave up meat once, and sugar is always a no-no. The thing she likes best about dieting though, beyond the weight loss and pride in her ability to stay more disciplined than the fatties, is that sweet high she always gets when she eats a forbidden food for the first time again.

.

She remembers trying chocolate when she was five, and though she's had it a million times since then, nothing ever tasted as good as that first candy bar...until she stopped eating chocolate for a whole year and tried to phase it back into her life. It was like rediscovering something new and amazing - - she felt like a kid again. It was pure ecstasy.

.

As Hyde pulls the elastic band out of Jackie's hair and digs his hands into her cascade of messy curls, she's brought back to that ill-fated Summer when she and Steven stopped fighting their long-standing attraction and gave the finger to convention. When they first hooked up, part of the kick for her was knowing how pissed of all of the cheerleaders would be when they found out. It was just so naughty to be with such a bad boy, and even though she knew deep down he wasn't, nobody else did and that was fine by her.

.

Jackie's sense memory kicks in and that old rush that she got from their very first 'real' encounter on the couch is back and it's palpable. Kissing Steven again, however reckless on her part, is like rediscovering chocolate. Actually, kissing Steven is a hell of a lot sweeter than rediscovering chocolate, if she's being completely honest with herself, except that chocolate doesn't come with a bitter aftertaste.

.

Her lips are tingling as he works them over with his own and probes his tongue inside, and she swears to herself that she can feel him faintly purring as he makes love to her mouth. The weed is making the experience more intense and his hands on her neck feel way too fucking good. She can barely breathe as he works his way down her neck, sucking and nibbling the entire way. Just as he reaches the collar of her shirt the phone rings and like the jaws of life, she is pried out of his grasp and taken to safety.

.

Jackie leaps up and runs into the kitchen to answer the call.

.

"Hello" she answers, breathing heavily into the phone.

.

"Oh, did I catch you at a bad time, honey?" Kitty asks. "You sound out of breath."

.

"I was in the middle of something and had to run for the phone" she explains, hoping Kitty doesn't have any follow-up questions, because her mind is too much like a sieve at the moment to think.

.

"Oh, well I can't talk too long, but I just wanted to find out how my baby is doing" she says.

.

Jackie peeks around the wall at Hyde, who has his head back on the couch and his eyes closed in thought. "He's doing a lot better. He's eating more."

.

Kitty smiles. "Oh good. That's good. This whole thing has just been...well it's been a nightmare. I mean, the trip is really a waste of money, because there's no way I can relax when one of my babies has been hurt. I wish there were a way for me to get back up there sooner, but the flights from most of these islands are fully booked or cost a fortune, since it's the holidays and all..." she yammers on as Jackie, only half-listening, places her hand over her chest and monitors her elevated heart rate, wondering if it actually is possible for a heart to explode.

.

"Jackie!" Kitty screams into the phone.

.

"Huh? Oh, I'm sorry Kitty, I just got a little distracted by something" she says.

.

"Well, I just wanted to thank you for taking such good care of my Steven. I know it can't be easy for you, especially with the way you two left things." Kitty empathizes with her one-time surrogate daughter.

.

"It's not a bother" she lies her, for lack of anything else to say.

.

"Jackie, honey, you can be honest with me" she urges. "Is there any spark left between the two of you? Do you think you might still feel a little something for him? I always thought you were so good for each other."

.

"Oh, he um, he mostly sleeps" she says, trying hard to find a way out from the interrogation.

.

"Is he awake now?" she wonders.

.

"I think so" she tells her as she steels another glance at her ex. "If you hang on a minute, I'll get the cordless phone for him."

.

Jackie rushes back into the living room and grabs the phone off of the side table and holds it out for Hyde to take. "It's Kitty."

.

As he takes the phone from her, his hand brushes up against hers and the tingling starts all over again.

.

He clicks the on button. "Mom?"

.

Jackie motions that she's going to hang up the other receiver and hides in the kitchen with an open bottle of wine, listening to Hyde's end of the conversation.

.

"Yeah, I am. Yes, I promise. Yes she is. Um...well I guess..." there is a long pause as Hyde looks around the room for Jackie "...yes, I do" he says thoughtfully. "Oh, okay. I can talk to you then" he clears his throat. "You too, mom" he says as he hangs up the phone.

.

He looks around the apartment, which is now eerily silent. He feels himself tense up as he wonders what the hell she's doing in the other room. "Jackie. I know you're hiding from me in the kitchen, but you can come out. I mean, I can barely stand up on my own so you don't need to worry about me mauling you."

.

She slowly emerges from behind the half wall, clutching the wine bottleneck so hard she's amazed it hasn't shattered in her hands yet. "You call Kitty mom now?"

.

"She asked me to start when I told her I was moving here. Guess she thought I might not back to Point Place for a visit if I didn't think I had family to see" he explains.

.

"I can understand that. I'm in the same boat and I haven't gone back once" she admits.

.

"When's the last you saw your mother?" he asks.

.

"Tampico" she replies simply, not wanting to reference the New Year's debacle again.

.

"Forman was with you?" he says almost to himself. "I always wondered what the two of you got up to when you were over there."

.

"Well, we saw Pam, so now you know" she tells him in a tone that lets him know she's done discussing this topic.

.

He looks around the apartment and smiles. "Figures you'd have three phones in a 700 square foot apartment."

.

"I live alone. It makes me feel safer" she confesses before taking a swig of wine out of the bottle.

.

He nods sadly, realizing again that this is just another example of Jackie having to fend for herself. She has nobody to look after her, and she barely has anyone who cares. All this time, he figured he was the martyr, the one who had suffered the most. Now he's not so sure.

.

"Do you talk to anybody besides Forman?' he asks.

.

She inches closer into the room and sits on the arm of the couch. "I stayed with Michael for a year when I first got here. I didn't have a job beforehand obviously, and Brooke thought I could use the support" she explains.

.

"He never mentioned it to me" he grumbles.

.

"I asked him not to, and amazingly Brooke was able to blackmail him into discretion" she says.

.

"Kelso had you and Brooke under the same roof?" he laughs hard. "I don't know if I feel bad for him or if I'm jealous."

.

She smiles. "Yeah, he hummed the theme song to Three's Company every freaking day but at least he gave up the dream of a threesome after about two months. It was smooth sailing from there on out - plus, I got to spend a lot of time with Betsy. Say what you want about Michael, but he's a loyal friend" she asserts.

.

"Especially to you" he adds, with just a hint of acridity.

.

"Guess I'll always be special to him, being his first and all" she guesses.

.

Hyde feels the old sting of jealousy reawakening from within. "Why is it so easy for you to be friends with him but not me? He cheated on you way more times than I ever even thought about."

.

She rolls her eyes. "Maybe we just have more in common?" she suggests, subconsciously trying to get a rise out of him.

.

Hyde narrows his eyes and his jaw flexes. "If you're gonna start with that crap, there's no point in us talking" he grunts, seeing through her passive-aggressive comment as he tries to shove a pillow under his knees.

.

"Maybe you're right" she shrugs, before standing up and walking back into the kitchen.

.

"Jackie!" he calls out angrily to her. "Damn it."

.

* * *

.

Eric walks out of the shower and Donna squeezes past him and gets in.

.

"There's barely room for one person in there, much less two, honey" he frowns.

.

She leans out of the door and kisses him on the cheek. "There are plenty of other rock star things we can tackle before we get off this boat" she assures him.

.

"Such as?" he wonders.

.

"We could throw a shoe into a T.V. and then toss it overboard" she suggests. "Or we could take PCP and jump from the pool on the second level into the pool on the first level" she jokes.

.

He raises his eyebrows in surprise. "You are a saucy little mix".

.

"I try" she smiles.

.

"Get in there and get clean so I can make you dirty again" he growls as he taps her on the ass.

.

"I like cruise ship Eric! He's dangerous!" she exclaims before turning on the water.

.

"Hey babe, where is my passport?" he asks. "I need it to change my travelers checks at the next port.

.

"In my small blue backpack" she shouts from over the hum of the water.

.

He leaves the bathroom and grabs her pack off of the side chair, then sits down on it and open the bag on his lap. He pulls several items out of the bag and places them on the bed. Still having trouble finding it, he empties the contents of the entire backpack onto the duvet and sifts through it with his fingers.

.

He finds his passport, but notices a strange envelope half under it. He lifts it and notices it's from NYU. It was postmarked a month ago and had been opened already. Eric struggles for a moment, deciding whether to violate her privacy, but curiosity gets the better of him and he opens the letter.

.

He unfolds the page and realizes quickly that it's a welcome letter from the psychology masters program at New York University. Not only has Donna applied to grad school, but she was accepted and already enrolled. She never said a word. This is why she wanted several years to "find herself" before getting married.

.

Eric feels his stomach rocketing towards his knees and rests his head on his hands for support. She's leaving him. She's wearing his fucking ring and was making all sorts of plans and promises to him and all that time she had one foot out the door.

.

Eric zips up the suitcase he's been living out of, grabs his passport and wallet and vacates their room-but not before leaving Donna a little surprise of his own.

.

* * *

.

Ten minutes after leaving in a huff, Jackie skulks back into the living room like a small girl and looks apologetically at Hyde. "Sorry for overreacting."

.

He looks up at her with surprise and bobs his head one time. "Me too." This is definitely a more grounded Jackie he's witnessing. Two years ago she would have stormed out of the apartment right before burning it to the ground.

.

She sits down next to him and leans back on the couch. "I wish it weren't so hard for us to be friends. I mean, it's so easy with Michael and Eric, and even Fez."

.

"Yeah, well you didn't have sex with Forman or Fez, so that helps" he theorizes.

.

Her brows knit as she remembers the Mexican holiday she and Eric shared two years ago. "I don't think it's that. It could be that I'm just so gorgeous you have trouble keeping yourself from jumping my bones, so in frustration, you lash out at me and say means things – OR - maybe we're both just too complicated to co-exist? I think some people just have bad juju together or something. "

.

He smirks. "We have bad juju?" He quickly realizes that both of her guesses are probably true.

.

She tries hard not to smile. "Are you making fun of me? Juju is a 'thing'!"

.

He rocks his head and tries hard to maintain a serious expression. "Totally."

.

"If you can have zen, then I can have juju" she insists, flicking his earlobe.

.

"Ouch Jackie! Leave it to you to beat up an invalid." he pretend pouts.

.

She turns her face towards him. "Poor baby" she coos.

.

Before she can say another thing, he grabs her face and presses his mouth to hers and imprints a sensual, lingering kiss on her.

.

She pulls back after a minute and exhales with exasperation. "What are you doing, Steven?"

.

"You've never been kissed before?" he jibes.

.

"That's not what I mean and you know it" she says sadly.

.

His face softens and he knows he's going to have to come up with something good if he wants to progress further with her. "I like being here with you" he admits. "Didn't you feel something when we kissed?"

.

She flashes back to the hood of her daddy's Lincoln on Veteran's Day, buries her forehead in her hands and sighs. "When I told you I'd love you forever, it wasn't an estimate Steven, I meant it. But that doesn't mean I want this. Look, do you want us to be friends?"

.

He nods reluctantly.

.

"Then you have to stop" she asserts.

.

He nods again. "Yeah. Okay."

.

"Let's just call it a night. Do you want me to help you to bed?" she offers. "It's getting late."

.

"See what good friend I'm being? You left the door wide open for me to say something disgusting and I'm not taking the bait" he grins, proud of himself.

.

She slips her arms under his and hugs him tightly. The scent of his skin is overpowering, reminding her of salad days and the sweet way he used to look after her. "Are you ready?" she asks, looking directly into his cerulean eyes, only inches from her own. Usually he's so readable with his glasses off, but she's at a loss trying to gauge him now.

.

She lets the weight of his body settle onto her chest and it takes every ounce of will power not to push him on the couch and fuck him senseless. But she can't. It'll just end in heartbreak. It always does.

.

They walk to the bed and as she leans him down, he slips from her grip and takes her down with him.

.

He groans from the pain and she rolls to the other side of him on the bed. "I'm so sorry Steven! Do you need ice or a new bandage? What can I do to make it feel better?"

.

Green from pain, he looks at her with haggard bemusement, cluing her in to what he thinks might ease the pain.

.

She can't help but return the look as well as the feelings behind it. "Okay, since that was my fault. I guess I could kiss it to make it better, but just one. I owe you that." She says, cursing her own stupid libido for dreaming up a hardly plausible reason to make out with him without having to absorb any culpability for it. Wasn't she just threatening him over almost the same thing five minutes ago?

.

"That might work" he grunts hoarsely through the pain. "Just as a distraction, of course."

.

"Of course" she agrees as she leans over and brushes her lips lightly against his. He reaches up and cups her face, bringing her closer and closer until she's nearly on top of him again.

.

* * *

.

Donna turns the shower off and wraps herself up in a towel. "I'll be out in a second!" she screams through the door.

.

She tries to catch a glimpse of herself in the mirror, but the fog is too thick, so she opens the door to let some steam out. "It's subtropic in here" she cracks.

.

An unusual silence greets her. "Honey?"

.

She tips her head out of the door and notices that the bed is covered in her stuff. She walks into the room and panic grips her as she realizes that the items on the bed consist of the entire contents of her backpack. "Shit. Shit!" she hisses at herself as she searches desperately for her white envelope.

.

Not finding it there, she tears around the room looking for it, before something catches her eye. On the door of the cabin she sees the letter, stuck there with a wad of old chewing gum. Written across the top in big, red angry letters is the message:

.

_"Have a good trip!"_

.

She knows exactly where she's heard that phrase before and she unfortunately knows exactly what it really means.

.

She rips the note down and sits on the edge of the bed, reading it over and over again as tears start to well in her eyes.

.

* * *

.

Eric watches as the port master signals an "all clear" to the captain for the boat to depart. The gangplank is rolled back and the ropes are loosened that moor the boat to the wharf.

.

As the ship is towed out to deeper water, he feels his past and future sailing away with it. He looks toward the twinkling lights of the town's main strip, squares his shoulders and walks uphill toward his present.

.

**A/N – I know it's a shorter chapter than the last, but it just felt like the right place to stop. There will be one more chapter during this time period, then a time jump again. **

**Remember: there is a happy ending, but like most things T70S, a series of misunderstandings and wrong assumptions about motives give these kids a bumpy ride until they get there. I promise no more J/E sex scenes-though I can't promise they won't have OC sex scenes. Hope you're enjoying it!**


	16. Chapter 16

**The end of this chapter has a major sMut scene, so it's rated M. Just giving you the heads up in case you don't want to watch two fictional characters graphically get it on. If you're like me and you do, then scroll down to the last scene :)**

**.**

**CHAPTER 16**

.

Old habits die hard. At least, this is what Jackie tells herself every time she finds her way back to a boyfriend who has treated her badly. She and Michael used to break up and get back together so often that their friends at school referred to them as "The Boomerang Couple".

.

Much like an arrowhead, the diminutive cheerleader easily gets herself in too deep with people, and once there, it is nearly impossible for her to pull herself out without the risk of serious injury. This holds especially true for close friends and boyfriends who don't have the same regard for her commitment to them as she does.

.

So, it comes as no shock to her that she currently has her tongue halfway down the throat of Steven Hyde, the worst transgressor of them all.

.

His fingers work their way up through the bottom of her hair and she can hear him faintly moaning as she wraps her arms tightly around is back. They kiss without break for several minutes until both feel the need to come up for air.

.

Breathless, she rubs her eyes and tries to get her bearings again.

.

"Is my stubble roughing you up?" he asks.

.

"Better than your porn 'stache" she quips.

.

"Aw do you miss it? I can grow it back if you miss it" he teases, smoothing with his fingers over the place where it used to live.

.

"I'm good" she says, shaking her head. "But you know what, do what makes you happy. Don't let me factor into your facial hair decisions." she says, patting his arm.

.

"What's wrong?" he asks her nervously.

.

She laughs ironically. "Probably easier for me to list what's right."

.

"You're always over-thinking things" he says as he caresses her neck with his hand.

.

"No, actually I think my problem is the opposite. I do a lot of stuff without thinking. This is one of those times" she sighs.

.

Though he's getting irritated with the sexual back-and-forth over the past hour, Hyde makes a concerted effort to speak without malice. "What is there to think about? We're adults now. I want you, you want me..."

.

"I'm not a casual sex kind of girl. It's not how I'm built." she declares.

.

"Yeah, I know that Jackie, we dated for two years, remember?" he barks.

.

"Sometimes I wish could I forget" she answers sadly.

.

"Did you ever stop to consider that I might want something more than casual?" he asks, his tight voice slightly higher than his usual baritone.

.

"Did you ever stop to think that I don't?" she retorts.

.

He frowns. "So what you're saying is that you don't want casual sex with me and you don't want something more than that with me either?"

.

"That's right." she says, relieved that he's finally getting it.

.

"So what does that leave?" he wonders.

.

Jackie averts her eyes and swallows hard, forcing herself to shun her desires and instead listen to the chorus of naysayers shouting at her in her head to run like the wind. "Nothing. It leaves nothing."

.

He stares at her in disbelief. "Just because of New Years? That was one night and I already apologized for it" he says indignantly. "You said you were past it."

.

She narrows her eyes at him. "Seriously? You just don't get it and you obviously never will."

.

The phone rings and Jackie turns to get it but he grabs her arm. "This conversation isn't over." he informs her.

.

She yanks her arm away and retrieves the phone in the kitchen.

.

* * *

.

"Hello?" she answers.

.

"Jackie, it's me" Eric replies.

.

Her brows knit. "What's wrong? You sound weird."

.

"I bailed" he tells her.

.

Her guts seizes up as she realizes from his odd tone that something is gravely amiss.

.

"Eric, what did you do? Where are you?" she asks.

.

"Ocho Rios" he answers, looking around him at the town. "In Jamaica."

.

"And where is Donna?" she ventures.

.

"Probably somewhere between here and the Cayman Islands" he informs her casually.

.

"Jesus Christ! Are you freaking kidding me?" she screams into the phone. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

.

"I figured you of all people would be cool with me doing this. I mean, you did the same thing not too long ago" he challenges.

.

"Okay, first of all, this is nothing like Tampico. I wasn't seriously involved with somebody whom I abandoned on a cruise ship. I was run out of town by other people's cruelty and there was nobody who gave a shit about where I was. Your parents must be freaking the fuck out right about now" she huffs the admonishment.

.

"Jackie, I don't need a lecture from you right now" he snipes.

.

She takes a few breaths to calm herself down. Knowing she's the only person who probably has any clue where he is right now, she decides to suck up her disappointment and just listen. "Okay, you're right. What do you need from me then? Do you need money?"

.

"I have some traveler's checks that should last me a while, at least until I get a job." he estimates.

.

"You're staying there? What happened on that boat, Eric?" she wonders, almost afraid to ask.

.

"I was going through Donna's backpack to find my passport, and instead I found a letter from NYU. She applied to grad school in another state, Jackie, and she didn't even tell me. The worst part about it is that she accepted the spot. This was her welcome letter," he explains, reliving the anger he felt just an hour earlier. "This all went down right after she agreed to wear my ring. We'd even set a rough time for the wedding. I'm such a fucking idiot."

.

"Okay, that's bad. But you still shouldn't have left. You should have stayed and talked to her about it, at least gotten her side of the story. You're doing exactly what Steven used to do to me and I don't have to tell you how well that strategy worked out." she sighs, leaning over to glance at Hyde, who is actively eavesdropping. "What are you going to do?"

.

"I don't know. I thought I'd stay here and clear my head for a while. You can tell my parents where I am, so they don't worry," he offers, casually wondering exactly where the hell he is, himself.

.

"And Donna? What do you expect me to tell her?" she questions timidly, praying that he'll say something she can repeat with a good conscience.

.

"She's not my problem anymore Jackie, tell her what you want" he snaps.

.

"Look, you need to get your shit together and come home. You can't keep leaving the country every time something doesn't go the way you planned" she advises. "You can crash here if you need to get away."

.

"I'll call you in a few days" he promises.

.

She sighs and puts her head in her hands. "Please be careful, Eric. It's a dangerous world out there" she says with resignation.

.

"Ditto" he smiles. "I love you, padawan. Make sure you don't get sucked into Hyde's web while he's there."

.

She laughs. "You may be too late for that. But I think I'm back on the rails now. I love you too, dorkus. Please stay safe."

.

The phone disconnects and she listens to the empty echo of the dial tone until it the harsh beeping sound starts up.

.

* * *

.

She replaces the receiver and walks into her bedroom. "I'm going to assume you heard all of that."

.

"What the fuck?" he aptly sums it up.

.

"Is it possible to have a mid-life crisis at 22? she wonders.

.

"I've been having one since I was 17, so...whatever." he shrugs.

.

"Maybe if you talked to him..." she suggests hopefully.

.

"Why would he talk to me when he can talk to you?" he asks snidely.

.

"Yeah, what a dumb suggestion on my part. It's not like the two of you are brothers or anything." she comments, rolling her eyes.

.

"We haven't exactly been close since he whisked you off to Mexico with him that night. I guess he was disappointed in me or something." he has a pang of remorse but quickly brushes it off.

.

Jackie suddenly feels bad about coming between the boys, even though she never asked to be in that position. "He misses you. I mean, he hasn't said it exactly, but I know he does."

.

Hyde is about to ask her something, but hesitates for a moment. "Is something...is the reason you don't want anything with me because of him?"

.

Anger starts bubbling up from the recesses of her brain. How much less self-aware can one person be? He's always had a problem taking responsibility for the way his actions have affected other people, but this is over the line. "Eric and I are friends. Period. I know it's hard for your ego to believe, but the reason I don't want to pursue anything with you has nothing to do with anybody else and everything to do with you!" she snaps.

.

The lack of proper communication is driving her crazy. This idiot still thinks she's pissed off about New Year's Eve. Why would she choose that specific day to be angry about when there are a host of other choices at her fingertips. There's the day he got wasted in a warehouse, rather than telling her he wanted her to stay with him. Or the day when he told her he revenge-fucked a nurse over an imagined transgression. Or maybe he could choose one of the countless days he chipped away at her soul like a strong tide wearing away the enamel of a stone - taunting her daily with cruel burns, whispering dirty things in his whore's ear while she wiggled on his lap and laughed at her pain. After two years, this wound still burns surprisingly fiercely.

.

Why couldn't he say he was sorry for any of that? Saying he's contrite for calling her a desperate loser is just the tip of the apology iceberg, as far as she's concerned. The fact that there's even an iceberg's worth of shit he needs to apologize for is another issue.

.

That he's focused on a ten minute drunken argument they had two years ago and hasn't even mentioned Sam or Chicago only highlights how trivial those events were for him. Minor blips to him that scarred her deeply and re-shaped her outlook on just about everything in her life.

.

This guy doesn't get it and she's not about to spoon feed it to him, because he probably never will. How can she let somebody so cavalier with her feelings back into her life?

.

"Jackie, I was drunk that night, it isn't who I am, at least not now anyway" he insists, wondering what the hell he's missing.

.

"Will you shut up about that night? I don't care about New Year's! Just shut up, Steven, will you? Every time you open your mouth you just make it worse" she steams.

.

"Then how am I supposed to make it better?" he asks earnestly.

.

She smooths her hair into a ponytail again and secures it with a rubber band from her wrist. "Some things cannot be made better with an apology, okay? Some things are so painful that you don't want to rehash what happened, you just want to move on." she explains.

.

As she snaps the last bit of the band into place she feels a sharp tug at a few hairs that were caught in the rubber. A welcome pain to distract her from her fury.

.

"You're saying that's what that night was for you?" he asks, completely gutted by the thought.

.

Exasperated, she decides to throw him a bone. "I'm saying that's what the last half of 1979 was like for me. Think hard about the things you said and did to me. New Year's was a drop in the bucket." she states simply. "Now just leave it alone, okay?" She grabs her coat and her purse and starts to head out of the house.

.

"Where are you going, Jackie? It's not safe for you to be going out so late alone" he warns.

.

"I need to get some air" she says as she slams the door shut.

.

* * *

.

**_Four days later._**

.

Donna on an upper deck lounge chair pretending to read a book. Well, not pretending as much as completely unable to focus. She wants to distract herself from her troubles, but she's too distracted by them to focus on her diversion. There's nothing to read or watch that's going to shift her mind from the reality that her life's foundation is crumbling away beneath her.

.

Why hadn't he waited? Why couldn't he at least talk to her? Is he so desperate to get away from her that he'll run to another country every chance he gets?

.

Red walks over with a newspaper and takes a seat next to the redhead. "How are you holding up?"

.

She shakes her head, her wordless response.

.

Red exhales. "There's nothing I can really say to defend him, and I wouldn't even if I could."

.

"I just don't understand why he ran off without speaking to me. I wasn't going to leave him, you know" she asserts.

.

"Even if you were honey, nobody would blame you at this point." he shrugs.

.

"I got into grad school for psychology. If he had taken a minute to just ask me about it, he would've learned that I got him a job at the recruiting office for the Peace Corp so he could come with me. He seemed unhappy in Madison and I was going to surprise him. Maybe it wasn't the best thought out plan, but..." she trails off, not sure where she's going with this.

.

Red places one hand on her back. "You can do better than my dumbass son. You know that, right?"

.

Her face crumples for a moment. "I don't want better."

.

"Contrary to popular belief, I love my son - but that only makes it harder for me to accept all of his screw-ups. He's done a lot of stupid stuff, like when he stole my tap that time and threw a kegger for underage kids, but then he goes and does something great like putting off college to work and help his family out. I guess what I'm saying is that he's not perfect, but he has moments that go either way" Red sighs as he cracks open the beer in his hand.

.

"I know he's not perfect, I just thought he was perfect for me. I guess it was just wishful thinking" she frowns.

.

"He'll get there one day kid, but he's young and stupid and it may take him a while to get his act together. It doesn't mean he doesn't care about you. Trust me, there's no way he's going to do better." he says, taking a sip of his brew.

.

Donna smiles slightly and looks up at her almost father-in-law. "Thanks" she nods simply, knowing he'd get uncomfortably if she got mushy.

.

He pats her on the hand. "Keep your chin up" he advises as he silently keeps her company while drinking his beer.

.

* * *

.

Eric wanders into a street side cafe and finds a table.

.

A middle aged Jamaican woman greets him with a smile and a thick accent. "What can I get fer ya?"

.

He returns the smile. "Do you have anything Christmassy?"

.

"Yer on yer own for Christmas?" she asks him sadly.

.

He shrugs. "Not planned. Just sort of ended up here."

.

"No family around ya?" she inquires concerned.

.

"Not today" he shrugs.

.

"Nonesense" she frowns as she wipes her hands off on her apron. "My name is Marie and yer commin' home with me."

.

"What? Oh, no I couldn't" he says, waving his hands.  
.

"Come on then, it's only over there" she says, pointing to the back of her restaurant, pointedly ignoring his protest. "I'll not have a young man like yerself all on yer own. What's yer name there?" she asks.

.

"I'm Eric. Forman." he says as he extends his hand to shake.

.

She looks at his hand with disdain. "Don't be ridiculous, Eric. I'm not gonna shake yer hand. Tonight yer family." She slaps him on the back. "Happy Christmas, Eric Forman" she smiles, then grabs his upper arm roughly and drags him behind the curtain of her restaurant into her home.

.

* * *

.

**WARNING: SUPER GRAPHIC SMUT IN THIS SEGMENT**

.

Jackie is on the phone in the corner of the kitchen while Hyde is in the shower.

.

"Has he tries to have his way with you yet?" Fez asks conspiratorially.

.

"What do you think?" she snorts. "I mean, you've seen me, right?"

.

"What are you going to do?" he wonders, absentmindedly shoveling M&Ms into his mouth as they speak.

.

"I don't know. Just avoid him until the Formans come to collect him, I guess" she responds, knowing this will be all but impossible in her tiny enclave studio apartment.

.

Fez imagines Hyde and Jackie brushing up against each other in her hallway at night and feels himself getting needs. "You're not tempted?"

.

"Of course I'm tempted! It's taking every ounce of self-control not to open up that shower door and bang the hell out of him, but what would that accomplish?" she challenges.

.

"When's the last time you got some?" the foreigner questions, trying hard not to picture Jackie 'getting some' from Hyde.

.

"It's been...a while." she admits begrudgingly.

.

"Maybe you should just get some and then leave his ass. I mean, you're going to New York in a week anyway, right?" he suggests. "Problem solved."

.

"It's too weird. I can't believe I'm going. I'm excited but nervous. I'm worried they won't think I'm hip enough in New York." she confides.

.

"Please bitch. You have me to make you look good, so what are you worried about?" he brags.

.

"I wish I had you there, Fezzy, believe me." she says sadly.

.

"What if you did?" he offers.

.

Jackie brings her hands to her mouth in excitement. "Please tell me you're serious!"

.

"As serious as a box of Skittles" Fez grins.

.

She looks confused. "Are Skittles are serious or silly?"

.

"Serious! Jeez. Get with the program!" he huffs. "So can I sleep on your couch until I find a place?"

.

"I can do better than that. You can live with me. I want you to live with me" Jackie insists, feeling herself get excited for the first time about her move.

.

"You don't think it'll be weird?" he wonders.

.

"Honey, you were my boyfriend for 24 hours and my friend for four years. I think the good outweighs the weird, no?" she laughs, giddy with the prospect of living again with her close friend.

.

"Can I still accidentally walk into the bathroom while you're in the shower?" he asks.

.

"What I don't know, wont skeeve me out." she rationalizes. "I'm really happy about this, Fez, you have no idea!" she squeals.

.

"Me too!" he exclaims and then claps his hands.

.

Hyde walks out of the bathroom in a towel.

.

"Holy shit. He's in a towel and he's wet!" she whispers. "What do I do?"

.

"Be a guy! Just have sex with him and don't make a big deal out of it" he eggs her on, hoping to get all of the little details later.

.

"I can do that?" she asks with surprise.

.

"We do it all the time" he smiles.

.

"I don't know Fez. I mean, I'm dying to, but everything is so complicated with him" she laments, twisting the phone cord so tightly around her finger that it starts to turn purple.

.

"Stop asking permission and just go get it, woman!" he orders her. "It's not like you're going to ruin his day by doing it with him."

.

"Okay, I've gotta go. Love you." she says quickly as she hangs up the phone.

.

"This was the biggest towel I could find" Hyde shrugs as he limps to the bed using his crutch.

.

Jackie watches a bead of water run down the center of his chest and pool in his belly button and catches her breath. "What?"

.

He grins, feeling her eyes on him. "You only have tiny towels."

.

"I'm only a tiny person, Steven" she smiles back.

.

The past few days have been pretty awkward. Hyde still doesn't quite understand what the problem is with Jackie, but he's been respecting her wishes and keeping his hands off of her. It's been a challenge though, because 700 square feet is not big enough to avoid her but just big enough to keep her out of arm's reach.

.

"Maybe you could help me get dressed?" he asks.

.

She bites the inside of her cheek to keep her facial expression neutral. Damn if she doesn't want to rip that tiny white towel off and spank him with it. "Of course I'll help you" she agrees.

.

He watches her make her way over to the bed. Wearing a pair of men's boxer shorts and a wife-beater tank top. She's basically cross-dressing in his clothes and for some reason it's hot as hell on her. To be fair though, he's discovered over the course of the week that just about everything is hot on her nowadays. Her body has really filled out. In many ways, he's looking forward to being rescued by the Formans from this continuous temptation. He wonders if water-boarding might be less torturous than being left in an urban cage with this feral kitten.

.

She strides over to him purposefully. "Where are your clothes?" she asks, trying hard not to look at his chest.

.

She seems a bit nervous and he can tell he's having an affect on her. "Over there" he points to the chair with his crutch.

.

"How are the crutches working?" she asks as she collects his jeans and tank.

.

"They kind of suck but they're better than being bedridden." he resolves.

.

She brings them back over and lays them on the bed.

.

He stares at her lasciviously and she blushes. "You look pretty sexy wearing my wife beater."

.

"I needed a shirt" she says, excusing herself. "You dirtied all of mine up."

.

"I tend to do that" he remarks, unabashedly checking out her legs.

.

"It looks good on you, so I assumed it would look fabulous on me" she twirls to show it off.

.

He licks his lips and tries to hide the inopportune boner that seems to have arisen. "It does."

.

"How can I help you?" she asks.

.

"Maybe take my towel off?" he jokes, hoping their flirting is going to give him something other than blue balls this time.

.

She gives him a look he has trouble reading. "And then?"

.

His eyebrows rise. Is she serious? "Whatever you want. You're in charge here, man."

.

"You're saying I can do anything I want?" she coos, now getting into the role she's playing and working up the nerve to initiate something.

.

Holy crap, she is serious. "You can make me do anything you want me to do. Dress me in my clothes like you used to dress your dolls, doll. Or don't." he looks at her with an immobile face to avoid seeming too eager. "I know how you like to boss people around, Jackie. Consider it my Christmas present to you."

.

They stare at each other blindly for a moment until Jackie makes a decision. She reaches out and hooks her finger into the towel and pulls him close. "You're wet" she says coquettishly as she runs a finger down the valley of his chest.

.

"Are you?" he asks with a cheeky smile.

.

Suddenly, she whips his towel off and throws it on the floor. "Oops."

.

He laughs. "Come here" he demands. "Now."

.

"I thought I was the boss?" she pouts.

.

"I changed my mind" he shrugs.

.

She slowly approaches and he scoops his hands under her ass and presses her flush against his body. She can feel his erection pressing into her and she maneuvers herself so it hits her in the right spot, making her gasp from the sensation.

.

"God, Jackie." He groans as she grinds against him there and softly moans her name into her hair. "Take your clothes off."

.

"You can't to that. I give the orders, it's my Christmas present, remember? Now, sit down" she demands quietly as she sinks to her knees in front of him. She slides her hands slowly up his bare inner thighs, leaving a trail of kisses in their wake. Once she reaches the apex, she grabs firmly and envelops the tip in her mouth, teasing at first with her tongue before going at it full throttle.

.

"What are you doing, doll?" he asks, pausing to make sure she's not doing something she'll regret. She has, after all, been rejecting his advances all week.

.

She releases him and purses her lips. "I believe this is what we English-speakers call a blowjob" she says as she returns to her task.

.

His hands find the back of her head and he runs his fingers through her dark mane as she pleasures him with her mouth, taking him as deep as she can manage, every inch of him inside of her mouth however she can get it.

.

She likes the control. He's helpless for once.

.

"Fuck Jackie, that feels amazing" he groans as she bobs her head up and down his shaft. The mere fact that she's actually here in front of him is enough to put him on the edge, but to have her on her fucking knees going down on him is making him fall over the cliff and crash onto the rocks below.

.

Sensing he won't be able to hold out much longer, her taps her on the head to warn her. "I'm gonna come" he warns her through staggered breath. "Jackie, now" he says sharply and tries to pull back, but she grabs his ass with one hand and pulls him deeper as he releases into the back of her throat.

.

His head is spinning. He's been with a lot of chicks and he's gotten a lot of blowjobs, but none of them have ever felt this good. Sam was a freaking professional and she didn't get him as hard as Jackie does just by holding it her hand. What is this girl doing to him?

.

She smiles up at him from between his knees and in his mind she looks like an angel. He face is round and soft and her eyes so expressive that he can always tell what she's thinking. Her transparency is reassuring, which is why he knows he's an idiot for ever suspecting she'd cheat with Kelso or anybody else for that matter. It would've been written all across her face, and the only thing he saw on her face after that horrible night in Chicago was a mask of deep pain.

.

He pulls her up and kisses her harder and with more meaning than he's ever done.

.

"You're incredible" he pants into her mouth, before probing her mouth again and again.

.

She pulls his head back by his dark blond curls and licks the side of his neck all the way to his ear. "Merry Christmas, you dirty hippie" she breathes into his neck before stepping back again.

.

Instantly, he feels cold where her body once was. He looks at her with soft blue eyes, open and receptive for the first time in years.

.

"I've got something else I want to give you for Christmas" he says as he coaxes her off of the ground. He removes her wife-beater tank, leaving her naked from the waist up. "Shit" he says as he takes in her naked form. "I forgot how beautiful you look naked."

.

He pulls her close and lays his head between her breasts while she runs her hands through his hair lovingly. He starts kissing her sternum and makes his way up to her neck as his hands tickle and gently pinch her nipples until they pucker.

.

She softly mewls into his hair and scratches his back lovingly as he unrelentingly sucks and tastes every part of her torso like buffet a after a famine.

.

He yanks her boxers down and slides his hand in between her legs to see how wet she is. "Oh God" he exclaims, pleased with what he's discovered. "I could come right here just touching you, baby."

.

With that, she grinds herself into his hand as he slips two fingers inside of her to get her going. She straddles his lap as he continues stroking her insides and buries her face into his neck when she groans with the sensation of being close to her climax. She bites down on his earlobe as he begins stimulating the outside of her core as well and she approaches her breaking point. "Oh God Steven. I want you so fucking bad" she nearly cries as she comes hard into his palm.

.

She guides him back onto the bed and lays him flat, then hovers over his new hardness with her own tingling nether regions. The tip of his erection just grazes her opening as she rocks backwards and forwards on his lap. "Tell me if I'm hurting you at all" she makes him promise.

.

She reaches down and strokes him a little more. "Shit Jackie, I need to be inside of you. Right now." he demands, as he lifts her bottom up with both hands and eases her back down onto his eager erection.

.

Both of them whimper as they make intimate contact. Knowing she'll have to do most of the work, she pins his arms over his head and begins to bounce. "Just relax and let me take care of it" she smiles.

.

"Yes ma'am" he grins as he watches her magnificent breasts jiggle with each small hop before he slides his hands over them and toys with her nipples.

.

As she gets closer to the edge, she tries to avert her eyes from his big blue ones that are currently burning a hole in her. He wants to make this intimate, that much is clear. Deep down, she wants that too, but there's no way in hell she'd ever really consider it. As tantalizing as it is, she knows him too well for that. It's safer to just look at the wall behind his head and come.

.

"I missed you baby" he whispers, "I missed you so much" he repeats, sending her over the edge.

.

As pleasure overtakes Jackie, she reminds herself that this is just sex and nothing more. She screams his name loudly as she climaxes hard, taking him with her as he explodes inside of her with a low moan.

.

As Hyde comes down from his high, he watches his lover writhing above him and can't help but hope that this night is a fresh start for the two of them and not just an apparition. A new beginning, where he can show her how he's changed and how much she means to him and always has. Maybe one day he'll even work up the nerve to tell her

.

**A/N – Okay, this chapter was all over the place, but it was tough to try to come up with ways to move the story along in a coherent way. This is by FAR my most graphic smutty scene to date, but I figured that if Jackie's just in it for the sex, it should be hot. Hopefully it did not disappoint you smut lovers out there.**

**.**

**The next chapter will have another time jump just after Christmas.**


	17. Chapter 17

**I know I've been neglecting "The Long Road Back" and I promise I'll catch up. I just have to strike while the iron is hot when I write and I'm feeling inspired by this fic at the moment.**

**.**

**If you need a little more J/H in your life, I just wrote a smutty one-shot that doesn't show up in the regular feed because it's rated (dun dun dun!) M for mature. It's called Magic Man, if you're interested. There's also a slightly less slutty J/H one-shot called Strange Brew that I had a lot of fun writing.**

**.**

**CHAPTER 17**

.

Jackie and Hyde are lying naked in bed, eating Chinese food out of the carton. Facing him while on her stomach, she eyes his food then leans over and steals a shrimp out of the carton with her chopsticks.

.

"Hey!" Hyde grumbles. "Why aren't you eating your own shrimp?"

.

"They taste better when they're stolen" she surmises as she steals another one.

.

He grins, knowing she's right. "Well aren't you just the little degenerate?"

.

She shrugs and steals another shrimp.

.

"Bad Jackie!" he yells as he leans forward and lightly slaps her naked behind with the chopsticks.

.

She yelps and rubs her ass. "That's abuse" she pouts.

.

Hyde kisses his hand and then groans from wound pain as he leans over to rub where he slapped her. "Better?"

.

"It didn't really hurt" she says as she sticks out her tongue.

.

As he watches Jackie steal another one of his shrimp, he realizes that he hasn't felt this at home in his skin in years. At the store he has to be responsible, he doesn't say too much around his friends, and with women he's criminally aloof. Even with the Formans, he can't completely relax, for fear he'll do or say something to disappoint them.

.

He grabs a giant bite of her lo-mein and crams it into his mouth.

.

"You're a pig" she complains, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

.

"I'm starving" he says as he grabs another bite.

.

"I'm really glad the Chinese don't believe in Jesus. Otherwise, we would have starved tonight" she notes thoughtfully.

.

Hyde laughs. "One billion people can't be wrong."

.

Jackie slaps his leg. "Don't let Kitty hear you talking like that!"

.

"Now who's abusive?" he snaps.

.

They continue eating in silence as the question hangs heavily in the air. Hyde is dying to find out if Jackie will take him back, and Jackie is dying to avoid relationship chatter at all costs.

.

"So, um...I was wondering..." he chickens out before he completes his thought.

.

"Wondering what?" she responds as she reaches for a fortune cookie.

.

He tries to figure out how to broach this topic without sounding like a complete pansy. This is the first time in his life he's ever willingly tried to define a relationship or push for a commitment. How can something that feels so unnatural be so right?

.

She looks confused to him, with a hint of amusement. "What?"

.

"Forget it" he grouses and cringes inside from embarrassment.

.

She grabs his chopsticks to get his attention. "No seriously, what?"

.

He looks down and curses his own existence. "About us." There. He finally got the words out but he feels oddly worse now.

.

"Oh." Her face drops and then recovers quickly.

.

He nods. "I see how it is. I'm just your meat puppet, right?" He accuses her angrily.

.

Jackie can't help but laugh. "What's a meat puppet?"

.

He narrows his gaze.

.

She realizes what he means. "Oh. Do I make you feel like a piece of meat, Steven?" she wonders aloud in a sticky-sweet tone.

.

He shrugs petulantly. "Whatever."

.

She crawls up to where his head is and wraps her arms around it. "My sensitive little Steven" she coos as she plants a kiss on each cheek.

.

"Will you get bent?" He roughly shifts her off of him.

.

"Steven, I've been helping you limp to the bathroom for the last two weeks. Would I do that for a meat puppet?" she poses the question back to him with her bottom lip out.

.

"Alright, enough of that" he gripes. He knows she's right and that he's acting like a chick. Time to take back control.

.

Hyde brings his mouth just behind Jackie's ear where she likes it. "Get on your hands and knees" he orders forcefully with a growl.

.

A shiver of excitement runs up her spine. She knows she shouldn't feel this way, but she really likes it when he bosses her around in bed. Maybe it's because she's so bossy at all other times? Donna would be furious if she knew, but then again, Donna clearly wouldn't be able to handle this much testosterone.

.

They stare at each other naked for a moment and he grins. "This might be my favorite Christmas ever."

.

"Even though you have a bullet hole in your hip?" she asks.

.

The corners of her mouth pick up. She dodged the relationship question successfully this time, and maybe she can screw him into a sex stupor and he'll forget to bring it up again? She tries not to get her hopes up.

.

"Even though" he confirms.

.

"But all we're doing is humping like rabbits and eating Chinese food" she comments.

.

"Two of my favorite activities," he nods calmly. "Which reminds me. I thought I told you to get on your hands and knees" Hyde says sternly as he starts to kiss and suck her neck where she likes it best.

.

She tries to think of something indignant to say but quickly gives up and does as she's told.

.

As Jackie feels his hand work magic between her legs, she entertains the notion of trying to be a couple with him again and finds herself wondering if all of their days together would be as amazing as this one. Her breathing becomes rapid and she thanks her lucky stars that unlike Michael, Steven knows what he's doing in bed. Then she remembers _why_ he's so good at what he does and tells herself that a man who would choose a stripper over her is a whore and wouldn't be satisfied being with only her in his bed in the long run.

.

The expression may be 'once bitten twice shy' but apparently she didn't get the memo the first two times. She's getting it now though, loud and clear. Fez was right. She could enjoy Steven now, but she has to get in and get out or she's going down. Act like a man.

.

* * *

.

Eric is sitting at the dining table having a traditional Jamaican Christmas Eve dinner with Marie and her three sons, Delroy, Bowie and Wendell who are looking him over intently.

.

"You really have no idea what this means to me" Eric says as they are finishing dinner. "The food is delicious, Marie."

.

"We're happy to have you" she smiles and heads back into the kitchen.

.

"How did you end up here on your own? Did you wander off a cruise ship or something?" Delroy asks suspiciously.

.

Eric points his fork at Delroy. "That's exactly what I did."

.

Wendell laughs. "A white boy has no business walking around out there without a Jamaican with him unless he wants to get himself killed. You're either crazy or some kind of undercover agent. Which is it, man?"

.

Eric laughs. "I guess I'm crazy, Wendell," he says, much to his host's relief. "I lived in Africa for a while, so my sense of danger is probably a little skewed."

.

Delroy smiles. He knew this kid was no anti-trafficking agent - the Feds would be at least be smart enough to send a black guy. This idiot is probably some dumb middle-American thrill seeker, looking to score some weed on the wrong side of town.

.

"Are you trying to score?" Delroy asks honestly.

.

The skinny guy's face contorts with confusion. "I have a girlfriend. At least, I did until I got off the boat."

.

Delroy smirks. "I meant are you looking for Mary Jane? That's usually the only time you tourists ever make your way over to this area."

.

"Oh! No, that's not why I came. Well, I mean, I wouldn't say no to a good joint, but no, I'm not here for that," he explains.

.

Bowie strokes his beard and smiles beatifically. "This man has a broken heart" he declares.

.

The other two brothers look at him like he's crazy.

.

"Don't mind my sister" Delroy apologizes sarcastically.

.

"Hey, having your heart broken can send a man on a spiritual journey" Bowie surmises.

.

"Spiritual journey" Delroy mocks. "You've been smoking too much chronic."

.

"Ain't nobody coming out here to mend a broken heart, man. You go to the resorts for that. The female tourists are always eager to take care of that" Wendell waggles his eyebrows.

.

Eric shifts uneasily in his chair. "Bowie is right" he admits.

.

Wendell points at Eric and laughs again. "See! I told you all he was no DEA agent. He's just plain crazy."

.

Eric laughs nervously. "No man, I'm cool, I swear. I can barely even spell DEA."

.

"You smoke?" Delroy asks.

.

"Any chance I get" he smiles.

.

He nods. "When you finish your food, come out back and join us" he offers. "Sample our product."

.

"I'd be honored, man. Thanks." he nods back in appreciation as Delroy stands to walk out back.

.

"One more thing, how are you at gardening, Eric?" he questions.

.

Eric shrugs. "I know a thing or two" he answers, completely lying.

.

Delroy nods and walks into his backyard.

.

As Eric finishes his food he almost wonders if this whole experience isn't just a long strange trip brought on by a deckhand slipping acid into his orange juice. He puts his fork down and looks around. If he was afraid he would end up like his dad, his life so far pretty much rules that whole scenario out. He said he wanted excitement, well here it is.

.

* * *

.

_**December 25, 1981**_

.

Donna steps out of her taxi, bags in hand, and rests them on the street corner. She pulls out a ragged piece of notebook paper with an address on it and checks to make sure she has the right apartment. She brings her bags to the door, takes a deep breath and rings the buzzer.

.

* * *

.

Jackie and Hyde are asleep on the floor in front of the tree. Their activities migrated them somewhere around 3am and they were both too exhausted to make their way back to the bed. The sharp sound of the buzzer ringing in not only unwelcome, but uncalled for.

.

Hyde grabs his head in agony. "What the fuck?"

.

He nudges Jackie, who seems to be in a sleep coma and won't wake up.

.

He pulls on a pair of boxers, and walks to the intercom. "What?" he answers gruffly.

.

A rush of excitement flows through Donna's veins. "Hyde! You're alive!"

.

He releases the button on the intercom and screams for Jackie, who still won't wake up. He presses the button down again. "Hey Big Red! What are you doing back so soon? Is Forman with you?"

.

Donna's expression becomes tight. "Um, just buzz me up. It's a long story."

.

Hyde tries throwing a decorative pillow at Jackie's head, but she still doesn't stir. "Are you still breathing, doll?" he shouts as he throws another pillow at her. The lump starts to move slightly, then stops.

.

He presses the button again. "Ah, maybe you could give us a few minutes? It takes me a while to get dressed with the injury."

.

Her nose crinkles. "Why aren't you dressed, Hyde?"

.

"Oh, no. I mean, I'm dressed, just not dressed up. It is Christmas, after all" he says, trying to remain Zen while his pulse rate is rising. He grabs the crutch leaning against the door jam for support.

.

She laughs. "Will you stop being such a dillhole and let me in already? It's freezing outside!"

.

"Ummm, yeah" he says as he presses the release buzzer for a half second and then walks as fast as his crutch will carry him over to the couch. "Beulah! Up and at 'em!" he nudges her with his crutch.

.

Jackie rolls over like a kitten and stretches adorably. He would have preferred to wake her up the old fashioned way, but the day doesn't always pan out how you want.

.

The buzzer rings two more times.

.

Her face scrunches up. "Who the hell is that?"

.

"Donna" he says casually.

.

She bolts upright. "What? Stall her!"

.

"What do you think I've been doing? It's not my fault you turned into Rip Van Winkle" he grumbles.

.

Jackie runs around the apartment naked looking for clothes. "Shit! Where is my underwear?"

.

Hyde lifts a pair of pink panties from the floor with the end of his crutch and offers it to her. She gives him a disgruntled look, puts them on and then runs around looking for clothes. She settles on an Olivia Newton John shirt and a pair of jeans, no bra, then picks up another shirt and tosses it at Hyde.

.

"Put this on idiot! You can't walk around in just underwear or she'll be suspicious." she warns as the buzzer goes off over and over again.

.

Jackie presses the button. "Hey Donna! Sorry for the delay, I just don't think Hyde's feeble mind understands how to operate these buttons."

.

He shoots her an unimpressed look and then leans on the buzzer to let Donna up. "Oh look, my feeble mind worked it out" he deadpans.

.

"What do you expect me to say? She thinks we hate each other" she explains.

.

Donna arrives at the front door and Jackie lets her in and they coldly embrace. They've patched things up for Eric's sake, but their friendship never really recovered fully.

.

"Hey you!" Jackie squeals with hollow enthusiasm. "What are you doing back so soon?" she looks around behind Donna for Eric and furrows her brow. She was hoping the moron came to his senses.

.

"You're standing! You gave us all a big scare, you jerk" Donna lightly frogs Hyde in the arm, so as not to hurt him.

.

"Imagine the scare I got when I woke up here" he cracks.

.

"Can I just—is there a place where I can stow my bags for a while? I'm kind of exhausted. My flight from Miami was insanely early" she complains as she sits on the couch.

.

"Can I get you a drink?" she offers.

.

The redhead thinks. "Do you have vodka?"

.

"Donna, it's 10:30 in the morning" the little one remarks, quickly realizing that something is very very amiss with her lumberjack friend.

.

"I'll have mine on the rocks with some OJ" Hyde demands cheekily.

.

Jackie scowls. "Oh you would, you lush!" then looks at her friend. "Oh, not you Donna. I'm sure you have your reasons. Steven doesn't even bother with those anymore" she announces breezily as she fetches the drinks.

.

"Bitch" he mumbles under his breath.

.

Something about this whole scene seems very contrived to Donna. She observes their disheveled appearances, the empty Chinese food cartons all over the table, and the fact that Hyde is wearing Jackie's Donna Summer t-shirt and mulls it all over. She then catches a glimpse of the midget's cheerleading outfit balled up on the floor and loses her cool.

.

"Oh good God, you two!" she yells with disgust.

.

Jackie stumbles out of the kitchen with three drinks precariously balanced in her tiny hands. "What? What happened?"

.

Hyde looks down at the floor. He's been busted enough times to be able to tell when somebody's about to drop the axe.

.

"You two are fucking each other again? Seriously?" she screams with ire.

.

Jackie conjures her most offended look and places her hand over her heart. "What on Earth would make you say something like that? Do you really think that I would get with that scruffy loser?" she glowers impressively.

.

Hyde stifles his laughter and just keeps his head down for safety.

.

Donna raises an eyebrow in his direction. "You're pretty quiet for somebody Jackie just called a scruffy loser."

.

"What do I care what that spoiled bitch has to say about me anyway?" he huffs poorly.

.

Their accuser takes one long look at each of them and smirks. "No. I'm not buying it, so you may as well just give up now."

.

"Fine" he exhales. "I fucked her." he says, aiming his crutch in Jackie's direction.

.

Jackie's face turns red with anger. "You fucked me? You _fucked_ me? If that's how you're going to talk about it then you can just go _fuck_ yourself!" She kicks a decorative pillow at him.

.

Donna smiles. "Now this interaction I believe."

.

Jackie slams all three drinks onto a side table and steams. "What are you doing here anyway, Donna?"

.

The tall girl lifts her drink and downs it in one go. "I think you know why I'm here, Jackie."

.

Jackie sits on the arm of the couch and pushes her drink towards Donna. "Go on, you need it more than he does" she says, gesturing to Hyde.

.

"Hey? What am I supposed to drink?" he complains.

.

"Why don't you gimp your way into the kitchen and take a look see?" she taunts as she lifts the remaining screwdriver to her lips. "Mmm. Refreshing."

.

Donna shakes her head. "Things just never change with the two of you, do they? I mean, even getting shot doesn't stand in the way of your crazy, poisonous love story."

.

Jackie glares at Hyde, who returns the look with an amused smirk.

.

"Now, for the main reason I'm here. Where's Eric, Jackie?" she asks her directly.

.

She shakes her head. "I wish I knew. He called me when he got off of the boat, but it was already too late for me to talk him out of his lunacy, because your ship had already left."

.

"You did try to talk him out of it, right?" she asks nervously.

.

"Come on, Donna. Why would I encourage him to be a tool and ruin his life?" she questions.

.

Donna shoots a glance toward the kitchen where Hyde is and then looks at her feet. "Maybe you're getting me back for encouraging Sam?"

.

"Oh my God. I would never do that!" she hisses in a whisper. "I don't want to talk about Sam in front of him, so can we just drop it? Honestly, what gives you the right to come to my house and accuse me of sabotaging your relationship? I would never do something like that and you know it!" she whispers indignantly.

.

Donna's body relaxes. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I know you're right. I'm just angry with him and taking it out on you" she sighs with a shaky voice.

.

Jackie's features soften. "I'm almost as mad at him as you are, I swear. I think he's lost his mind or something. What kind of person just runs out on their girlfriend over a misunderstanding that could easily be cleared up if they just opened their stupid trap?"

.

Hyde walks out of the kitchen carrying the entire bottles of vodka and orange juice.

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"Nuh-uh. No way, Steven. Not with your medication. Go smoke up if you want to get messed up" she orders her lover.

.

He slams the bottles on the table for effect and then grabs a joint out of the ashtray and lights up while shooting her a dirty look.

.

Donna watches this entire exchange in awe. "I really am sorry I didn't support your relationship back in the day. Clearly, there are no two other people on the planet who could live with either of you."

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Jackie shrugs. "He wishes."

.

"So Foreman is AWOL?" he asks as he struggles to hold in the toke.

.

"He thinks I'm moving to New York without him" she laments. "Have you ever heard of something so crazy? Why would I leave my boyfriend without even telling him?" she shakes her head.

.

"Why, indeed?" Hyde comments.

.

Ignoring him, Jackie scoots closer to Donna and refills her two glasses with booze and juice. "You're moving to New York?"

.

"I got into grad school. For psychology." she tells her.

.

Jackie lights up. "That's amazing! You know you're not the only one who is going to New York" she smiles coyly.

.

"Why do you think I showed up at your doorstep?" she asks.

.

"You want to come with me?" the pixie asks in amazement.

.

"I don't know anybody there. Now that Eric's not..." she waves her hand in the air as if to push away the bad thoughts. "So I thought we could, I don't know, hang out or something" she explains hopefully.

.

"You know Fez is coming too?" she smiles.

.

Donna smiles so wide she almost cries. "He is?"

.

"We're living together" Jackie peeps.

.

"Isn't that cozy?" a stony-faced Hyde remarks.

.

"Maybe you, I don't know...you want to live with us?" Jackie offers.

.

Donna can't hold the tears in anymore. "You have no idea how much this means to me, midget. I'm so lost right now without him and I just...why are you doing this when I've been such a crap friend to you?"

.

Jackie sits next to her friend and wraps her arm around the amazon's shoulders. "You weren't always a crap friend, Donna. You were once a very good friend who took me in when I had nobody. I'm just returning the favor, I guess."

.

Donna wraps her long arms around the tiny brunette and cries on her shoulder. "I'm not used to being the one crying! I hope I don't get mascara on you." she sniffs.

.

She gets excited. "You wear mascara now?"

.

Donna sobs.

.

Jackie looks fraught, not used to comforting others. "Don't worry about getting me dirty, I'm not wearing cashmere right now and your clothes are...still lumberjacky, so we're good."

.

"When's this little reunion moving to the East coast?" Hyde asks, devoid of any emotion.

.

Jackie's back stiffens and she turns to her ex. "Just after new year's" she informs him in a small voice.

.

He nods his head and takes another drag off the joint.

.

**A/N – Hope you liked this chapter. The next one will continue from where we left off and then time jump somewhere in the middle of the chapter. Please let me know what you think by reviewing and hopefully making this a 'favorite' if you like it!**

**PS- For those of you wondering, YES I am a fan of the show Weeds!**


	18. Chapter 18

**Okay, this is a very intense and dirty chapter, so definitely rated M, from the point where Hyde follows Jackie into the kitchen until Donna walks in-then you're safe. **

**.**

**I have a dilemma here. I wrote "What a Long Strange Trip it's Been" first, without any intention of doing this prequel and so there are a lot of crazy things from this fic that look as though they've never been discussed in that fic. I'm trying to rectify it here in later chapters, but I may have to go back into the other fic to make things correlate. **

**.**

**Anyway, the drama has just completely taken on a life of it's own and I don't want to limit the story too much based on the other fic, so just bear with me! Think of this as extra AU.**

**.**

**FYI- time jump and angst-fest ahead! PLEASE DO NOT KILL ME, ZENNIES!**

**.**

**CHAPTER 18**

.

It's late evening and Hyde is asleep in bed. Donna and Jackie are curled up together on the couch passing a bottle of peach Schnapps back and forth and chatting.

"Are you back together with Hyde?" Donna whispers as she takes a swig.

.

Jackie makes a face and whispers back. "God no! This is just a fling."

.

"Are you sure he realizes that?" she wonders.

.

"He knows I'm moving in less than a week. I mean, we haven't even talked about Sam or Vegas, for God's sake" she rolls her eyes. "And we definitely haven't talked about 'us'" she shudders at the thought.

.

Donna looks a bit disconcerted. "I don't know Jackie, Hyde kind of looked pissed when he found out you were moving." She takes another sip and passes the bottle.

.

"What does he expect? Just because we can't keep our hands off of each other doesn't mean things are hunky dory with us. Do you know, he _still_ hasn't apologized to me for Sam and I don't even think he's actually sorry about it, to be honest with you. What does that say about his character if he can't even see the fault in what he's done?" she whispers ruminating on the issue as she drinks from the bottle.

.

The redhead takes it all in. "I guess I can see your point. And no, he didn't really look all that sorry when Sam was around. I mean, I don't think it was a proud moment in his life, but I'm not sure he feels like he did something wrong" she shrugs.

.

"My point exactly!" an animated Jackie scoots onto her knees and points at Donna. "He thinks he can treat me however he wants and I'll just roll over for the chance to be with him again. I'm not like that anymore. I didn't like myself very much when I allowed him to treat me that way." She chugs the Schnapps and passes the bottle.

.

The tall one sits up and looks proudly on her friend. "I can't believe I'm talking to the same Jackie Burkhart I grew up with. You've really come a long way" she beams and takes another swig.

.

The little one preens. "Maybe one day I'll even be a lesbian just like you."

.

"Feminist" she laughs. "You are such a feminist little midget!" she giggles as her small friend shushes her to keep her volume down.

.

"I thought lumberjacks were supposed to have a high alcohol tolerance" she teases.

.

"I think your gauge is all screwy because you've been boozing with Dudley Moore over there" she aims her thumb at the sleeping man in the bed. "Why did you agree to take care of him when he was such an asshole to you?"

.

Jackie sighs. "He had nobody else, which I can relate to. And, well...I guess I'll always love him" she nods sadly. "Despite his mean streak and his criminal lack of self-awareness."

.

Empathy sweeps across Donna's well-formed features. "I can relate to that" she nods too. "Hey listen, I know Hyde hasn't tried to talk about Sam with you, but I'd like to." she says, her face pinched with thought. "I was a bad friend, and I'm really embarrassed about the way I treated you that year. I know we haven't really been close since then and I really miss it. I miss you. I even miss your shallow, backhanded compliments!" she admits, tears forming in her eyes. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you like I should've been" she confesses as she paws at her friend's narrow shoulders.

.

Jackie's bottom lip juts out and she starts to cry as well. "You have no idea how long I've wanted you to say those things to me" she wraps her arms around Donna's neck as both girls sob drunkenly into each other's t-shirts.

.

Hyde half-rises from the bed. "Who died?"

.

"Shut up, you!" Donna scowls at him from behind Jackie's shoulder.

.

"What did I do?" he throws his hands in the air. "Seriously, what happened?"

.

"Donna and I finally made up and we're a little emotional" she tells him.

.

"And drunk too, I see. Why did you make up? Did you guys have a fight or something?" he asks, completely oblivious to the long-standing situation.

.

Jackie looks directly at Donna and lifts her eyebrows. The redhead just shakes her head, unable to fathom how clueless Hyde continues to be.

.

"I was apologizing to Jackie for the way I treated her when Sam was around" the lumberjack smugly informs him.

.

Hyde's stomach tightens at the mention of his ex-wife's name and he buries his feelings of guilt under shovelfuls of Zen. "Whatever" he says nonchalantly as he reaches over to grab the stash and roll a joint.

.

Donna glares at her girlfriend with anger on her behalf.

.

"Don't bother" Jackie swats the air with her hand. "No use expending energy knocking on a locked door."

.

"You have turned very philosophical" she says in a daze.

.

"Nah!" the brunette laughs. "I just get super deep and insightful now when I'm wasted. You can ask Eric."

.

Donna sighs and falls back into the sofa.

.

"Smooth move, Einstein" Hyde calls out to his ex as he lights the spliff.

.

Jackie curls up next to her friend. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking."

.

Donna gets teary again. "I know. I'm not mad, but can I ask you something?

.

She nods as she pulls strands of red hair out of her friend's wet face.

.

"Did he tell you...do you know why...why does he always leave me?" she asks with anguish in her voice.

.

Jackie swallows the lump forming in her throat and looks at the ceiling. "I wish I knew. I really do. Mexico was...well, that one was my fault" she admits.

.

"He still agreed to go with you!" she counters angrily.

.

"Yeah, but he didn't realize we were going that far. I may have tricked him" she purses her lips and looks guiltily at the floor.

.

"He left with you and was...there for you or whatever. He could have turned around and come back for me but he didn't. He stayed." she says simply.

.

"Is that one reason why things have been so weird between us?" she asks.

.

Donna shrugs. "I thought I was jealous of you, because he confided things in you that he didn't tell me. Eventually, when things got back to normal between us and he started sharing things again, I realized I was actually jealous of him. He had you as a best friend and I didn't. I didn't have anybody."

.

"He was literally all I had after that horrible night" she says ruefully.

.

"If I were a better friend to you, you would have come to me for help. You should've been able to come to me. And if you had, he would have never gone with you to Mexico" she assess. "It's not your fault he went to Mexico, Jackie. It's mine." she decides.

.

"That's ridiculous. Anyway, it doesn't matter. He's gone off the rails now, and believe me, I'm nearly as angry about it as you are" Jackie insists.

.

"It's _my_ fault" "No it's _my_ fault" Hyde mocks using girlish voices. "You both are at fault for bringing down the room." he complains.

.

Donna narrows her eyes at him in disgust while Jackie just laughs at him in amusement. "He's right, Bid Red. It's Christmas and we should be doing something Christmassy." she declares.

.

"What? Like bake something?" she suggests.

.

The princess crosses her legs daintily. "I don't think so. At least, _I_ don't think so. If you find that Christmassy, you should go for it." she encourages.

.

"Well do you have any supplies?" she asks.

.

Hyde cackles. "She barely has supplies to boil water, Donna."

.

"Maybe I'll go out and get some?" she looks at her friend, wondering how long she should stay out.

.

Jackie shrugs and looks at Hyde, who is preoccupied with changing his bandage.

.

Donna grabs her jacket and puts it over her pajamas and slips her feet into a pair of snowboots. "I'm borrowing your hat. And before you say something, I promise I won't stretch it out on my giant lumberjack head" she mocks.

.

"Get marshmallows! And gingerbread! And more booze!" she shrieks as her friend closes the door behind her.

.

* * *

.

Jackie mills around the room cleaning up the used glasses and old plates. Just as she makes her way into the kitchen and sets down the dirty dishes, she feels hands creep onto her from behind and screams.

.

"Jesus Steven, you startled me" she snaps angrily.

.

The look in his eyes tells her he's not in the mood to talk and he quickly backs her up against the side of the fridge and pins her there with his body.

.

She stands frozen, both excited and petrified at the same time, wondering what his plans are to do next.

.

Hyde slowly starts to unbutton Jackie's pajama top, from top to bottom, without once breaking eye contact. Her breath hitches as he reaches the bottom and spreads the shirt open, exposing her bare chest to the frigid night air.

.

He leans in to kiss her, but instead makes a detour for her neck, leaving her lips aching for his touch. Inch by inch, he kisses his way down to her chest and captures one of her nipples between his lips and rolls his tongue over it again and again, eliciting satisfied moans from his lover.

.

With his hand, his pinches her other nipple hard, causing Jackie to scream out in unexpected pleasure. He shoves his hand down the front of her pants and burrows his fingers into her wet core, which speeds up her breathing rapidly.

.

After a few minutes of getting her warmed up, he roughly yanks her pajama bottoms with her underwear down to her ankles and shoves his knee in between her legs and brings it sharply up to meet her apex.

.

Jackie gasps at the contact and tries to grab for Hyde's shirt, to no avail. He clearly has an idea of what he wants and it doesn't involve him being naked.

.

Never leaving her eyes, he pulls his sweatpants halfway down his legs, freeing his swollen erection, which he presses firmly into her stomach. She squirms, trying to get him to move it downward, but instead he lifts her off her feet and pins her against the nearby wall. Without ado, he tears off the rest of her bottoms, leaving her in just an open shirt and a pair of woolly socks.

.

"Wrap your legs around my waist" he orders her and he guides himself into her tight warmth and thrusts deep.

.

"Oh God" Jackie moans, reveling in the feeling of him filling her completely. She bucks her hips to try to get him to move, but he remains still, watching her squirm like a pinned bug. "Please baby. Come on" she begs as he stands there smirking at her.

.

"When were you going to tell me you were leaving?" he asks her point-blank.

.

Unable to think straight or form coherent sentences, she just raises her body up an inch or two and sinks back down with a sigh.

.

"You want something from me, doll?" he wonders, coldly ignoring her needy ache as he takes one of her nipples lightly between his teeth, causing her to shiver with want.

.

"Steeeven" she whimpers, starting to get irritated by the torment.

.

"What can I do for you?" he teases, in between licks and sucks.

.

"Please" she begs breathlessly. "Please fuck me" she asks him, almost crying with frustration.

.

He moves for a moment inside of her and then stops cold. "When were you going to tell me, Jackie?" he says, repeating his earlier question.

.

Her eyes start to tear and she looks at him with derision. "I wasn't" she admits as she closes her eyes tightly and tries to breathe through the torture.

.

"That's what I thought" he announces placidly as his mouth forms an angry line.

.

With her admission, he plows into her hard, over and over again, relentlessly, as she feels herself being overcome by too much sensation too quickly and cries out for God at she hits her climax.

.

Without having even been given a chance to ride it out, he drops her roughly to the floor and flips her around, pressing her chest tightly up against the wall as he thrusts into her from behind. Over and over he pounds into her like she's a hired whore, humiliating her with his impersonal fucking until he comes hard inside of her, sinking his teeth into her shoulder as he explodes within her.

.

Legs shaking, she turns around to face him with tears and accusation in her eyes. Guilt and self-loathing seep into his features slowly as she slaps him hard across the face and slides down the wall, sobbing uncontrollably with her face in her hands.

.

He pulls his pants up and drops to his knees, trying in vain to wrap his arms around her crying form. "I'm so sorry" he says, his voice cracking with emotion. "I'm so sorry baby, I didn't mean...I was just so...you were going to leave me again. I'm just...Oh God, Jackie...I'm sorry..." He tries frantically to button up her shirt to give her modesty.

.

She slaps his arms away and tries desperately to control her breath. She swore she would never shed another tear over him and she failed. She's a failure, and he won again, as usual. "Get the fuck away from me, Hyde!" she shoves him, sending him to land roughly on his back on the hardwood floor.

.

He screams out in agony as he writhes in pain from his wound being reopened. Tears form in the corners of his eyes that never fall, as he grits his teeth to deal with the ripping feeling on his hip.

.

Frightened and pissed at the same time, she cautiously watches him, trying hard and failing miserably to will herself to enjoy his suffering. "Shit!" she curses angrily as she leans over to check his bandage, which has quickly soaked through with blood.

.

She runs across the kitchen half-naked and returns a minute later carrying antiseptic, fresh bandages, tape and a lit joint between her teeth. She mercifully places the joint in front of his lips and coaxes him to toke deep.

.

She then carefully removes his wet bandages and lays them on the side, while pouring antiseptic directly onto his wound, causing him to cry out in pain as the now pink-tinged liquid rolls off his torso onto the floor beneath him.

.

Hyde helplessly watches Jackie lay a clean bandage over the wound and apply the tape to hold it in place. She then scurries around collecting all of the solied castoffs to throw into the garbage.

.

As she leans over him, beasts still half-exposed through the gaps in her mis-buttoned shirt, he grabs her forearm and gives her a look of remorse so intense that she has to look away. He wants so desperately to say something to make things better, but he knows that she isn't interested in hearing his voice right now. She gingerly pulls her arm away from him and finishes her nursing duties, leaving him on the floor still holding the burning joint.

.

She disappears from sight and he takes a final hit off the roach while cursing his own existence in his head. He can hear the shower start up and some commotion as she slams the door shut. Through the shared wall between the kitchen and the bath, he listens to the soft hum of the faucet layered over the staccato sounds of Jackie's sobbing.

.

Just then, Donna walks in the front door and enters the kitchen carrying two shopping bags. She spies Hyde on his back and can hear Jackie crying under the din of the shower. Her green eyes narrow as she looks down in disgust at her old friend. "Haven't you done enough?" she asks, forcing the words out of her mouth through the thick bog of bubbling anger that is growing inside of her.

.

Hyde exhales deeply and closes his eyes tightly to avoid the harsh glare of his reality.

.

* * *

.

_**February 14, 1982.**_

.

Jackie, Donna and Fez are all getting ready to go out to a club. Donna lights up a fattie and passes it to Fez as she turns the volume up on the radio. The song "Pass The Dutchie" by Musical Youth plays loudly and they dance along.

.

_**This generation rules the nation with version**_

_**Music happen to be the food of love.**_

_**Sounds to really make you rub and scrub.**_

_**.**_

_**I say: Pass the Dutchie on the left hand side**_

_**Pass the Dutchie on the left hand side**_

_**It a gonna burn**_ _**give me music make me jump and prance**_

_**It a go done**_ _**give me the music make me rock in the dance.**_

_**.**_

Fez passes the joint to his left to Jackie, who is using the crimping iron on her hair.

.

"Don't let that joint get too close to your hairspray or you'll go up like one of Kelso's rocket jackets" Fez warns.

.

Donna laughs. "Rocket jackets! Those were so funny!"

.

Fez laughs along too. "Your hair looks terrible!"

.

Jackie starts laughing. "I told her that earlier but she wouldn't listen" she pouts.

.

"You guys suck!" Donna throws a feather clip at Fez and then notices her hands. "My hand are freakin' huge" she laughs.

.

"Ooo feathers." Fez smiles excitedly as he clips them into Jackie's hair.

.

_**You play it on the radio**_

_** a so me say**_ _**we a go hear it on the stereo**_

_**A so me know you a go play it on the disco**_

_**A so me say we a go hear it on the stereo.**_

_**Pass the Dutchie on the left hand side**_

_._

"Come on bitches, saddle up!" Jackie barks."We've got a velvet rope to bust through." she informs them, hoping to get them to hustle.

.

"Where did you say you met this guy?" Fez asks Donna.

.

"He was at the Police concert that Jackie covered for MTV" she answers.

.

"Oh my God, Sting is so HOT!" Jackie squeals, singing the last word. "But I think he's married or something because he wouldn't go past first base with me" she blows a raspberry.

.

"You lie" Donna accuses her.

.

The feisty brunette stomps her foot angrily. "Fine. But he wanted to. I could see it in his eyes. You're suck the fun out of everything, Donna. You're a succubus." she points to her and nods frantically.

.

"I do not know what that word means, but it sounds sexy" he waggles his eyebrows.

.

_**I say east**_ _**say west**_ _**say north and south**_

_**This is gonna make us jump and shout.**_

.

"She doesn't know what it means either" Donna snorts.

.

"Excuse me skank, I am very deep while I'm high. Very. And I know very well what it means. It means...Juggs-a-poppin'" she cackles, cracking Fez up in the process.

.

"You and Fez are super sloppy. You need to pull back on the Mary Jane until we get to the club, okay?" the redhead sighs.

.

They both shrug and look at each other for a moment...then break into hysterical laughter again as Donna rolls her eyes.

.

* * *

.

Eric wears a gardener's vest and holds a pair of clippers. He walks back and forth between the rows of marijuana plants, pruning them as he goes, slipping the clippings into a large pocket in the front of his vest. Harvesting is best at night when nobody is around snooping.

.

As he enters through the back of the house, he finds Bowie and Wendell dancing around to "Pass the Dutchie" as they pass a bottle of local rum back and forth between them.

.

"Hey man!" Wendell calls to him as he watches him enter the house. "You have to hear this new song. It's like they wrote it for us!" he runs his hand along the side of his bald head and shakes it out. "And why wouldn't they brother, because look at us. We are hot!"

.

Eric's face brightens as he listens to the words. "Now, that's funny" he laughs as he takes his vest off and carefully lays it on a nearby chair.

.

Bowie points to Eric and waves him over. "Come on, man. Have a drink and a dance. You work too hard."

.

"Gotta earn my keep" Eric winks as he takes the bottle from Wendell and swigs hard. His face turns bright red as he coughs from the strength of the liquor. "What the hell is this stuff? 100 proof?"

.

Bowie flops into an armchair and pulls his sunglasses out of his reddish 'fro and puts them on. "90 Proof, you little girl" he taunts.

.

"A little warning might have been nice" he grimaces as he takes another drink of it and recoils.

.

"China doll has great giant balls" the bald man laughs drunkenly as he pats Eric on the back.

.

"I used to know somebody who was called doll" he sighs, thinking of Jackie.

.

"She was a chick, right? But not your chick" Bowie decides.

.

Eric looks strangely at the Jamaican Zenmaster and then turns to his brother. "He's like a freaking mind reader. It's eerie."

.

"I'm just observant" Bowie nods with confidence.

.

Forman has a seat next to his friend. "Alright, then tell me something. Why am I in Ochos Rios harvesting chronic instead of fucking my gorgeous fiancee?"

.

The redhead laughs. "Nobody has the answer to that, man, but here you are" he gestures to him. "And she is long gone."

.

"What the hell am I doing with my life?" he asks as he buries his face in his hands.

.

Wendell lights up a fattie. "Eh!" he calls to get Eric's attention and then passes him the joint. "Pass the dutchie on the left hand side and it will come to you." he smiles impishly. "Pass the dutchie."

.

Eric takes a drag and passes the joint to his left into Bowie's waiting fingers. He looks down at his hands, tanned and calloused from months working in the field, and wonders whether Red would be proud to know he was doing something with his hands. Something manly - not that gardening is especially manly. Earning his own keep – by growing illegal drugs. Forging his own way – by deserting those close to him. What would Red think of his little boy now?

.

**A/N – I know this story is completely CRAZY but I hope you're enjoying the ride! Hold onto your hats because things are about to get dark. Please let me know if you're digging this fic in the reviews section.**


	19. Chapter 19

**sMut Ahead.**

**Warning – there's some M rated stuff in this chapter—nothing too graphic other than the scene with Eric at the end (I've marked it with a warning) - though Hyde's 2nd bar scene is a little dirty (but I wouldn't exactly describe it as straight-up smut, more like implied). I have a sailor's mouth and so does the basement gang in my fics, so brace yourselves bc this chapter is dark and dirty. Okay fine. This chapter is smutty. It's for a reason though, not just to titillate. These kids are all driven by sex, drugs and rock-n-roll and that's basically what this chapter is about. **

**.**

**BTW This is a LONG chapter, so there will be plenty to read besides the smutty stuff. Excuse any typos-I am bleary-eyed from getting this chapter finished.**

**.**

**FYI – I used to live on E. Houston street in the late 90's and had the pleasure of hanging out at all of these unusual (aka revolting) dive bars and clubs just before they all disappeared. It's so sad that these landmarks have vanished, but at least I can write about them! And for the record, I'm not exaggerating about the depravity. It really was that gross and I really am quite a bit like Jackie, but luckily everybody was freaky, so I didn't stand out too much : ) **

**.**

**CHAPTER 19**

.

Jackie, Donna and Fez meet a bleach blond punk wearing combat boots named Andy in front of CBGB's, the infamous punk club in the East Village.

.

Jackie, wearing a tight safety-pinned t-shirt and a pair of skinny, tattered jeans with heels walks in front of the line and heads straight for the bouncer. It's been unseasonably warm lately, so she's left her trench unbuttoned to show off her figure and lets it trail behind her. The doorman takes one look at her and parts the rope, letting all four of them inside.

.

"This is so exciting! It's my first punk club!" Fez squeals.

.

"Be cool" Donna snaps under her breath.

.

* * *

.

The club is louder than any they've been in before and they struggle to hear each other over the racket.

.

"I'm going to go hang with Andy" Donna informs her roommates.

.

"Are you alright being alone with him? I mean, you haven't exactly dated since the twerp" her little friend wonders.

.

"I'm a big girl" she says dismissively.

.

Jackie bites back the desire to make a size joke.

.

Five minutes into the club and Andy has Donna backed up against a brick wall. He puts a tab of acid on his tongue, cups her face and then deep kisses her, tonguing her hard with the drug. She closes her eyes and waits for it to take effect.

.

Jackie grabs Fez's arm and pulls him close. "What the hell was that? Did she just drop acid with that guy? She hardly knows him!"

.

"It looks like he knows her now" he observes as Andy is practically dry humping her into the tattered bricks.

.

"Normally, I like to go to the ladies room to freshen up when I get to a club, but I have a feeling I'd just come out dirtier" she wrinkles her nose. "Promise me you'll stick by me, Fezzy. I don't know how I feel about this place" she says, worrying her bottom lip with her teeth.

.

"Do not worry goddess, I'm scared to be alone here too. Discotheques have gotten very dark" he frowns.

.

One of the opening acts is tearing up the stage-literally. The lead singer has stripped down to his skivvies and is wearing a jump rope as a belt, his only article of clothing besides shoes and his briefs. He has blood running down both of his legs, a casualty of his desire to writhe around of the floor while singing. Never a good idea when the floor is covered in broken glass. Good thing for him he's too drugged out to notice.

.

"Fuck me!" a dirty punk calls out from behind Jackie's shapely ass.

.

She turns around ready to shut him down, only to find him to be the hottest guy, punk or not, she has seen in all of NYC. She purses her lips and tries to look annoyed in a sultry way.

.

"This isn't really your scene, am I right?" he laughs, while hungrily eying in her hot body.

.

"What makes you say that?" she responds in a cool, detached tone.

.

"You look like you've showered today" he smirks. "No visible piercings and you're not wearing Docs" he notes, gesturing to Jackie's heels.

.

A hint of a smile breaks across her face and she approaches him. "Okay Johnny Rotten, what's my scene then?"

.

"I'd say you're more Danceteria or Studio 54 than CBGB's. Am I on the right track?" he questions, closing the gap between them.

.

"Oh, I love Studio 54" Fez coos.

.

Jackie shoots him an annoyed glance.

.

"I like to think that I fit in anywhere" she brags, wetting her lips.

.

He nods. "Wanna bet?"

.

She shrugs, so he grabs her elbow and leads her to the back of the club where people are shooting up heroin out in the open.

.

Jackie eyes grow wide with fear and she looks nervously up at her mystery guide. "Is that heroin?"

.

"What? People don't shoot up out in the open at The Roxy? Oh, and stay away from that stuff, it's bad news," he cautions her.

.

Jackie frowns, knowing she's out of her league.

.

"Still think you fit in everywhere, beautiful?" he smugly glares at her.

.

Her eyes drop. "Maybe not" she admits. "But I like the Talking Heads and I'm staying. You don't have to be a dirty punk to think they're awesome."

.

"That's right. You just need ears." he smooths his t-shirt down his cheat. I'm Michael" he smiles, extending his hand to shake hers.

.

"Of course you are" she sighs and takes his hand in hers. "I'm Jackie."

.

"You look familiar, Jackie. Where else do you hang out?" he asks, looking at her keenly.

.

"I work for MTV" she says, trying to sound casual about it.

.

"Really? Are you a VJ or something?" he laughs, duly impressed.

.

"Not yet, Just a correspondent. I like it better though. I wouldn't want to be stuck behind a desk" she tells him.

.

Seeing as you're a burgeoning celebrity and a little out of your element here, I figure I should maybe stick around, you know, as kind of your club sherpa." he suggests.

.

"And what do you do, Michael, besides being a club sherpa?" she wonders.

.

"A little of this and a lot of that. Can I get you a drink?" he offers, looking around for the bar. "I think the safest thing to drink here is the beer. Always make sure it's closed when somebody gives it to you, by the way. People slip stuff into drinks all the time" he tells her.

.

"A beer would be nice. This is my friend Fez" she gestures to the frightened foreign man, now clinging to her side.

.

"You nervous, mate?" he laughs. "I may have something for that." he says as he reaches into his front pocket and pulls out a vial. "Want some Charlie?" he offers.

.

"What is it?" Fez asks.

.

"It's coke. Good for the nerves." he informs him. "Jackie?" he taps a little out onto the side of his fist and holds it aloft for her to take from him.

.

She thinks about it for a minute and smiles. "I've never done it before, What's it like?"

.

"You know those days when everything seems to go your way?" he asks, his eyes glistening. "That's every day with this."

.

She looks into Michael's clear blue eyes and feels oddly at home with him. She may be miles away from her comfort zone, but she can tell already he's not like the others here tonight.

.

"Okay" she decides.

.

Michael smooths back the hair from the side of Jackie's face. "Bend over and hold one of your nostrils closed. Snort the powder with the other."

.

She does as she's told in the most ladylike way she can manage and within minutes can feel the euphoria kicking in. "Oh my God" she smiles. "Forget the beers. I feel like a fucking rock star!"

.

Michael chuckles at her innocence and offers some coke to Fez, who warily follows Jackie's lead by snorting it. "Woah" he exhales as his pupils dilate and he takes in the room. "I do feel a little better. How long does it last?"

.

"A couple of hours, depending on how much you take and whether you take a bump as the night goes on. Wanna dance?" he asks them both. "I think David Byrne is going on now."

.

"I wanna dance so badly!" she jumps in place as she grabs both men by the hands and drags them out to the middle of the club.

.

Fez surveys the club for Donna, vowing to keeping a watchful eye on both of his roommates. He's having trouble clinging to thoughts though and can feel himself losing track of time and where he is. Synthetic drugs are a rough high. Never has Fez gone this far down the rabbit hole without a rope before.

.

* * *

.

Hyde sits at an Irish sports bar in the Wicker Park neighborhood. It's kind of fringe, but he's kind of fringe, so it works.

.

It's been a strange couple of months for him since Jackie and Donna left for New York. The week after Christmas was surprisingly uneventful, as the Formans came home early from their trip and took him back to his own apartment to care for. Jackie barely said a word to him after the kitchen incident and he honestly didn't blame her one bit. How does one apologize for revenge-fucking the one they love most just for trying to play it safe?

.

He realizes now, of course, that the reason she didn't tell him about moving in the first place was because she predicted he'd pull some asshole stunt like this at some point. Sometimes she knows him better than he knows himself, which is comforting if also annoying as hell. It doesn't matter anymore though. Nothing matters where Jackie is concerned, since the chances of her even making eye contact with him again are nil. That's what happens when you scare a hot chick off like she's a monster and you're a torch-carrying mob.

.

That look in her eyes when she turned around to face him will haunt him for the rest of his life. He'd seen her hurt before and angry many times, but this was just...something else. A wound deeper than the one she cared for on his hip, and he wasn't so sure hers would get better anytime soon.

.

Hyde's barely been able to look at himself in the mirror since that night, but he's made himself do it, each and every day, because he knows he can't run from his own demons anymore. He's been so quick to blame others for his misfortune for too long and it took something like debasing the woman he loves to make him turn the microscope on himself. Time to man up and grow up.

.

A busty blonde with cowboys boots over slim black denim and a sweatshirt with the collar cut out approaches the man with the glasses. "Sunglasses inside, eh? I sometimes have that affect on guys" she smiles as she pulls up a stool.

.

Hyde looks up from his beer, nods, and returns his gaze to the brew. "You want a beer?" he offers, figuring he may as well have something nice to look at while he drinks himself into a stupor.

.

"Hell yeah" she jumps, sitting backwards on the stool with her legs spread. "I'm Janine."

.

"Hyde" he tells her without looking back up. Hyde signals the bartender to bring them both another round.

.

"Thanks for the drink Hyde. Are you here all alone tonight?" she wonders.

.

"Not anymore, I guess" he shrugs, leaning back in the chair to get a better look at her. Not bad at all, though he's not sure she's the type of girl he could bring home to his mother - maybe Edna, but definitely not Kitty. Not after Sam.

.

"What's a stud like you doing all alone on Valentine's Day?" she flirts.

.

"Valentine's Day is just a holiday made up by Hallmark to sell more shit to more people for no particular reason whatsoever" he growls. "I mean, I don't need the shills at Hallmark to tell me when to do something romantic for my chick."

.

"When do you do romantic stuff for your chick?" she smiles softly, hoping he's imagining her in one of his romantic scenarios.

.

"I don't" he says flatly.

.

"You don't do anything romantic for ladies or you don't have a girl?" she asks, cocking her head to the side to get a straight on view of his face.

.

"Both" he grins self-satisfactorily.

.

Janine is mildly crestfallen. "You sound like a man who's never been properly taken care of by a woman" she purrs.

.

Hyde can see where this is going quickly. He looks at his watch—it's nearly midnight—that's long enough to wallow. Maybe Janine would like to 'properly take care of' him in the bathroom stall or in the alley?

.

"Maybe you're right Janine. Maybe if I'd just been taken care of a little bit better by my women I'd jump on board with this whole corporate holiday bamboozle" he guesses, trying to appear earnest for the purposes of sealing the deal, despite the fact that everything out of his mouth is anything but.

.

"Poor baby" she coos, running her hand along his thigh. "Maybe I should take care of you? Would you like me to?" she offers as her hand drifts toward Hyde's crotch.

.

That didn't take long at all. In fact, this may be his quickest pickup outside of the two-line exchange with Pam Macy at prom. Funny how women always want the challenge where men always look for the easiest path.

.

"That's cool" he says, downing the rest of his beer then throwing a few bills on the counter.

.

Janine sidles up to Hyde and whispers in his ear "Meet me in the alley behind the bar."

.

* * *

.

Wendell and Eric hold court at a poolside bar at one of the resorts. Bowie relaxes in a chair nearby, observing the universe.

.

"Which one of you is getting married?" Eric asks the five African-American ladies they're currently chatting up.

.

"I am" the thin, girlish one raises her hand drunkenly.

.

"You're breaking our hearts, Jill. And on Valentine's Day" he pouts for affect.

.

"I don't want to break your heart Wendell. You're so...nice." she sighs, as sincere as one can be while incredibly blotto.

.

"How will you ever make it up to me?" he gives her a coy smile.

.

She sways a little bit and then takes a few steps closer to him. "Would a kiss make you feel better?" she suggests.

.

"It would be a good start" he says as he shoots a side glance at Eric in a non-verbal victory.

.

Eric laughs to himself as Jill launches herself at Wendell, shoving her tongue down his throat while running her hands all over his smooth, bald head.

.

"What's so funny?" Celia, who is built like a brickhouse, asks Eric with a raised eyebrow.

.

"Well...I...uh, I guess nothing" he nods, turning his attention back to his beer.

.

"Do you want to know what I was laughing at?" she offers.

.

"Okay..." he treads cautiously, feeling an impending burn coming on.

.

"I think it's funny that the one girl here who's already got a man is the only girl here getting laid tonight. On Valentine's Day, no less!" she complains while shamelessly eye-fucking Eric.

.

He shifts in his chair, more confident now. Wendell wasn't joking about the tourists being so easy. "That's um, that's quite a tragedy" he smiles, batting his heavy-lidded bedroom eyes.

.

"Well, what are we gonna do about it?" she asks, practically daring him to take her to bed.

.

"What would you like me to do about it?" Eric counters.

.

"I'm sure you can think of something" she grins and grabs his hand to pull him off the bar stool.

.

* * *

.

Jackie, Fez and Michael are dancing like lunatic while The Talking Heads play "And She Was".

.

_**And she was lying in the grass****  
****And she could hear the highway breathing****  
****And she could see a nearby factory****  
****She's making sure she is not dreaming**_

.

Jackie spins in a circle and throws her arms around Michael's neck.

.

"Jackie, you're amazing" he says with hearts in his eyes.

_._

_**See the lights of a neighbor's house  
Now she's starting to rise  
Take a minute to concentrate  
And she opens up her eyes**_

_._

He runs his hands down the length of her body, experiencing every curve and dip like he's exploring Everest. She leans into the feeling of his fingers on her skin and arches her back toward him as his digits slip under the hem of her shirt and inches upwards.

_._

_**The world was moving and she was right there with it (and she was)  
The world was moving she was floating above it (and she was) and she was**_

_.  
_Donna is in a bathroom stall with the door broken off and her jeans half-down, getting fucked up against the wall by Andy, her date for the night.

.

_**And she was drifting through the backyard****  
****And she was taking off her dress****  
****And she was moving very slowly****  
****Rising up above the earth**_

_._

Fez is dancing with a woman with short hair and lots of piercings. She wears a crop top and he can't resist putting his hands on her bare hips and pulling her close. Aggressively, she leans in and kisses him, swallowing his breath, pushing for more. He reaches behind him and hooks his finger on the back of Jackie's jeans.

.

Jackie turns to find him sucking face and laughs. She gives his ass a little pinch and turns back to gorgeous Michael. Why are all men named Michael so man-pretty?

_._

_**Moving into the universe****  
****Drifting this way and that****  
****Not touching ground at all****  
****Up above the yard**_

_._

Things are getting heated and Michael breathes into Jackie's ear "Wanna get out of here?" Her response is just to grab his hands and lead him out of the club, tapping Fez on the way out to let him know she's leaving.

.

He grabs his make-out partner and follows behind. _  
._

_**The world was moving and she was right there with it (and she was)  
The world was moving she was floating above it (and she was) and she was**_

_._

Donna zips her jeans up and brushes her hair away from her face. Andy hands her a joint and they sit in some decaying wood chairs to watch the rest of the show.

_._

_**She was glad about it...no doubt about it****  
****She isn't sure where she's gone****  
****No time to think about what to tell them****  
****No time to think about what she's done****  
****And she was**_

_._

* * *

_._

At the same time, Hyde is in the alley behind the bar he was at getting blown by Janine, the eager, pneumatic blonde with the giant rack.

.

He closes his eyes and tries to imagine it's Jackie's lips around his shaft, but this woman is performing like it's her job, moaning away inauthentically while she swallows him, distracting him from blocking her out.

.

He focuses hard on remembering Jackie's laugh as she rolled around in bed while he tickled her with the end of a paintbrush.

.

**– Flashback –**

_._

_December 1977._

_._

_In art class, the kids were told to do self-portraits for their mid-terms, and she thought it would be meta if she had her body painted and took photos of herself half-dressed. As a good boyfriend, he of course volunteered to do the body art. What guy wouldn't?_

_._

_She winks at him coquettishly and slowly starts removing her clothes to the song already playing on the radio _– _"Pump it Up" by Elvis Costello._

_._

_Jackie pulls the straps down on her tank top, revealing her lack of bra, and scoots it down over her hips onto the floor._

_._

_**Down in the pleasure center, hell-bent or heaven-sent  
Listen to the propaganda, listen to the latest slander  
There's nothing underhand that she wouldn't understand**_

_._

_She pushes her jeans down her legs, turns around and bends over, waving to him from between her legs. Her supple ass cheeks mooning him from beneath the lower elastic of her bikini underwear while her knees bend in time to the beat._

_._

_**Pump it up, until you can feel it  
Pump it up, when you don't really need it**_

_While bent over, she slides her tiny underwear down her legs and throws them to him from between her knees as she bops to the music.  
._

_**She's been a bad girl, she's like a chemical  
Though you try to stop it, she's like a narcotic  
You want to torture her, you want to talk to her  
All the things you bought for her, putting up your temperature**_

_._

_She takes a small can of chocolate body paint and pours it in the crevasse between her breasts. He watches it cling to every hill and valley as it makes it's way down to her nether region as his throat dries up from leaving his mouth open for too long._

_._

_**Pump it up, until you can feel it****  
****Pump it up, when you don't really need it**_  
.

_He finds out the hard way that he's been holding his breath as he feels himself turning red and he lets out an unintentional gasp._

_._

_She beams a triumphant smile and tosses him a paintbrush. "Are you ready to work, Picasso?"_

_._

**– Flashback end –**

.

As Hyde remembers Jackie's blue-green eyes burning wickedly into his with intent, he rears his head back and explodes unexpectedly into Janine's mouth with a long moan.

.

Pulled out of his dream he looks down at the blonde on his knees before him. "I'm sorry, Janine. I wasn't thinking. I should have warned you or something." he apologizes, embarrassed.

.

She grabs a hold of his arm and pulls herself up to stand. "That's okay sunglasses, It's always a risk with the job" she smiles amicably.

.

Hyde looks at Janine with confusion as a sick feeling starts to fester in his gut. "By job, you mean...blow job?" he asks hopefully.

.

She gives him an icy smirk. "That'll be $40, hot stuff" she informs him as she wipes the zenmaster's residue from her lips with the back of her hand.

.

Accidentally paying for sex? Yeah, if this isn't his rock bottom, Hyde really isn't sure what is.

.

He opens up his wallet and shakily pulls two $20 bills out, carelessly dislodging a cheerleading photo of Jackie he had always kept in one of the slots.

.

Janine bends over to pick up the photo of Jackie and examines it. "Why are you buying yourself a blow job in a dirty alley when you've got this waiting at home for you." She looks closer at the photo, entranced by Jackie's natural beauty. "Is she a model?" she wonders, holding the picture up for Hyde to see, as if it didn't reside in his own fucking wallet.

.

He was wrong earlier. THIS is rock bottom.

.

"Just take the cash already" he shoves $40 into his prostitute's waiting hand.

.

She tucks the money into her bra and hands the picture back to Hyde, who runs his finger over it before protectively sheathing it within the folds of his wallet.

.

"If you ever want to hire me to join you guys, I'd only charge you half. I'll bet she looks great naked, huh?" she smiled lasciviously as she walks past him toward the back door of the bar. "I'll see you around, sunglasses" she coos.

.

'No you won't', he thinks to himself. Nobody's going to be seeing him around after this little slip-up. As much as he used to dig casual sex, he hasn't been able to get off without either being with or thinking of Jackie during sex for the past five years. FIVE YEARS. That's a really fucking long time to be jerking off to the memory of one girl.

.

He's wasted so many years trying to get over her or rationalize his attraction to her that he's given himself nothing but heartache and disappointment in the process. What's the point of fucking a hot blonde like Sam or any of the other trash he's stumbled drunkenly into during the 80's, when all he can think about is a tiny brunette with mismatched eyes and a voice that could cut through glass?

.

Eventually, it all comes down to that difficult, devoted, taxing, transfixing and loving bitch who has become so much a part of him that he can't even feel like himself unless he's with her. Why is he fighting this? What is he trying to prove?

.

She got a hold of his heart anyway, so who is he kidding with this defensive bullshit? Every single time he's had his heart broken it's been because he was trying to prevent himself from having his heart broken. He's smart enough to see the irony in it...finally.

.

Let it be known that on February 15, 1982 at 1:17am, Steven J. Hyde had his first moment of clarity, his first bolt of inspiration in the twisted, dark fog that's plagued his life for the past 22 years.

.

It's become increasingly clear to him that Jackie Burkhart will never leave his thoughts, so he makes a vow to himself on this day to do whatever it takes to make her his again. He's never had ambition really, or drive, or a desire to do anything but smoke up and veg out, but he has all three now in spades and all it took was losing her for the fourth time to find himself.

.

* * *

.

Jackie and Michael walk past the Mars Bar holding hands. He gestures to it with his chin, wordlessly asking if she'd like to get a drink there. She takes one look at the grimy glass brick windows, covered in graffiti and a year's worth of putrefying paper fliers and pulls a face.

.

Michael laughs heartily. "Yeah, probably not the kind of clientele you'd be into" he teases. "We're actually only a few blocks from the Hell's Angels headquarters."

.

"Are you making fun of me?" she purses her lips in admonishment. "I can hang there. I can fit in anywhere!" she exclaims, actually feeling as confident as she sounds for once, due to the blow she's been snorting all night.

.

He looks at her like she's the cutest baby in the nursery and grabs her hand again. "I've got a better idea."

.

"Why don't we go to the Pyramid?" the drunk chick with Fez volunteers. "It's drag night."

.

"What's that?" Fez asks.

.

"Have you ever been to a gay club?" Michael questions them, biting back a smile.

.

"No, but we have gay friends back in Wisconsin, so if it's half as fabulous as they are, we're in" she answers boldly. "Lead the way, gay club sherpa" she jokes, sliding her hand into his back pocket as they walk.

.

Fez's "date" slides her hand into Fez's front pocket and let's her fingers brush against his swollen erection. To return the favor, he slides his hand in her front pocket...and also brushes his fingers across _her_ swollen erection, making him sober up really fast. Fez's eyes expand tenfold as he looks up at the beautiful 'woman' currently stroking his genitals through his pocket and he isn't quite sure why he's not as disgusted as he expected to be.

.

* * *

.

**WARNING—YOU ARE NOW ENTERING SMUTTSVILLE, RATED M.**

.

Celia raises her arms over her head as she rides Eric Forman like a wild stallion in the cramped double bed of her hotel room. Sweat drips off of both their bodies, making the ride slick and fast.

.

Eric runs his wet thumbs back and forth over her hard and puckered nipples, eliciting loud moans as he watches her gallop above him like she's being chased by Storm Troopers. Good thing he smoked a little too much pot earlier in the night or he would never have lasted as long at this rate.

.

"Jesus" he pants as he takes in her ridiculous body, oddly a carbon copy of Donna's but in a light mocha shade. In the dark of the Jamaican night, if he squints his eyes he almost can't tell it's not his redheaded love fucking him within an inch of his life, and he finds himself pretending a little that she is, despite the pangs of guilt that go along with dreaming of somebody else when you're in the sack with a different girl.

.

"Turn around" he finds himself requesting without realizing it. His libido is talking and all he can do is smile and nod in agreement.

.

Celia leans forward and tongues Eric's mouth with abandon before dismounting and climbing back on in reverse. She looks over her shoulder and almost sneers as she caresses her own behind, now in full view. "Ready?" she asks him.

.

"Giddy-up" he urges as he slaps her lightly on the ass to get her going again. She giggles and takes off, riding him harder than before.

.

From behind, it's even easier to play make believe. From behind, he could even pretend he's doing Princess Leia, which is tempting, but not as tempting as being with the girl next door who has his soul.

.

"Oh God" he moans as he reaches around to rub circles on her core with one hand while gratifying her breast with the other.

.

She has the same weight as Donna does on his lap and her behind forms the same perfect, upside-down heart every time she slams back down onto him.

.

He pinches her in both sensitive areas, sending her into the stratosphere, shrieking his name almost in anger as she comes hard. He can feel his release coming now too, and he closes his eyes, imagining straight red hair swinging in his face instead of curly brown and he too falls over the edge into bliss.

.

"God Donna, yes!" he shouts as he rides his climax out, making every other sound in his head fall silent.

.

**A/N – do you all need a cigarette? I know I do! So, this was the chapter I was warning you about, where everybody sort of crosses over to the dark side (thank you Darth Vader!). I wanted to get them all to a crazy, desperate place, before I tried to fix things. I'm a woman who likes a challenge.**

**.**

**Please let me know what you think. It's was kind of a doozy to write and took a lot longer than I planned, so it would mean a lot to hear what you thought of it. As always, I'm just happy you're here reading my zenfic, so thanks! xox **


	20. Chapter 20

**Sorry the updates haven't been so fast this week—my husband's been out of town on business and I've had to hold down the fort with two certifiably insane little boys. My evenings are a blur of cooking, laundry and red wine. I've become Kitty!**

**.**

**This chapter is sadly sMut-free, so it's safe to let the kids out. Anyway—hope you like it. And for those of you who haven't picked up on it, I've been having at least one of the characters (if not all) get stoned in each chapter. Hence the fic title : D**

**.**

**And yes, I will eventually finish up the remaining two(?) chapters of The Long Road Back, as well as an epilogue.**

**.**

**CHAPTER 20**

.

Jackie wakes up in her bed and carefully slides out from under the arm of Michael. Both are fully-dressed but crashed together after a long night.

.

She creeps out into the living room with the intent to make coffee and literally stumbles onto Fez, who is sitting on the floor next to the couch.

.

"Ouch Fez. What the hell are you doing on the floor?" she wonders, as she rights herself.

.

"Just doing some thinking" he says quietly.

.

Knowing Fez isn't one for 'thinking' of anything that doesn't involve sugar or boobs, Jackie slides down onto the floor next to him. "What's up?"

.

"I'm not sure I want to talk about it yet" he pouts, looking glum.

.

She knows he scored last night, because she could hear it through their thin walls. She also has a sneaking suspicion that the lady in question was not exactly what she presented herself to be.

.

"Does this have to do with Alex? That's her name, right?" she confirms.

.

Fez nods.

.

Jackie racks her brain trying to figure out a way to phrase her question without offending Fez or putting him on the spot. She always had an inkling about her foreign friend that he may not have been privy to himself until last night.

.

The pervert's devotion to Kelso is legendary and borderline obsessive, which Michael doesn't seem to notice of course - even though the rest of the gang has ridiculed it for years. Hyde used to joke that Fez was 'half in love' with Michael, and perhaps Steven wasn't too far off.

.

"Umm...is Alex short for Alexander or Alexandra?" Jackie asks quietly, dodging his eye-line to avoid making him feel uncomfortable.

.

Fez took a breath. "Seems you're a lot more observant than I was. What gave it away to you?" he asks, trying to decipher what he seemed to miss.

.

"Well, she did seem to have an Adam's apple...and quite large, unattractive hands-almost as big as Donna's" she continues, trying hard to break it to him gently. "And earlier, when we were dancing at CBGB's, there was a distinct, ahem, bulge in her...um...pants."

.

Fez and Jackie stare intensely at one another until he breaks, laughing hysterically at himself. "How could I not notice any of those things?" he howls, triggering a giggle fit in his best girlfriend.

.

Jackie's laughing slows down. "Are you sure you didn't? I mean maybe, on some level, you kind of did?"

.

Fez stares thoughtfully for a moment at the dark-haired beauty. "I'm sure, Jackie" he says, "but when I found out, I was surprised that it didn't really seem to bother me much."

.

"What do you mean?" she asks with brows knitted in confusion.

.

"I was attracted to her, and I liked making out with her. She was sexy and fun, and I liked dancing with her. None of those things changed after I realized she had boy parts. If I liked her as a woman, why couldn't I like her as a man? What's the difference really? When the lights were out, dancing with her and kissing her felt the same as it did with Nina, except that Nina never let me lead." he rationalizes, working out his feelings as he verbalizes them.

.

"What does this mean?" she wonders. "Are you, you know...like Fenton?"

.

Fez shakes his head. "You know how much I love boobies, Jackie. Those feelings will never disappear. I guess I would say that I'm just, you know...open to whatever life has to offer."

.

She scrunches up her face with titillation. "Like—open to anything?!"

.

He shrugs. "Whatever feels good, I suppose. I mean, I wouldn't give up a piece of candy that tastes yummy just because I found out it was made from something I don't normally eat."

.

"Even if it were made from black liquorice?" she challenges, knowing her buddy's strong aversion.

.

Fez shudders with the thought and then nods. "Sugar is sugar, Jackie. If it's tasty, I will eat it" he decides.

.

The little pixie smiles at her friend and throws her arms around him. "I'm so proud of you for being so mature and honest with yourself, Fezzy" she coos while pulling him in even closer.

.

"Ah yes, Jackie. A little to the left" he requests lasciviously.

.

She gasps and then slaps his arm. "Perv!"

.

* * *

.

Donna rolls over in bed and grabs her head in agony. If she didn't know better she'd swear Lars Ulrich is doing a drum solo directly on her brain. How did she get home last night?

.

Donna throws off the covers and leaps out of bed, shocked to discover that she is completely naked. She looks over at the bed, frightened but sure of what she's about to find. A man with bleached blond hair, tattoos and a studded cuff is lying face down on Eric's side of the bed. She pulls the top sheet from the blanket and wraps it around herself like a towel.

.

This is going to require an extra-long call to her shrink later on today.

.

Silently, she creeps out of the bedroom, breathing a sigh of relief as she closes the door shut. She squeezes the skin between her eyes, wondering what came over her and what crazy shit went down the night before.

.

She turns around and notices Fez and Jackie, still sitting on the floor but with coffee in their hands now, staring intently.

.

"Good morning sunshine. You're certainly up with a bang" Jackie teases, her impish eyes gleaming.

.

Donna rolls her eyes in response and pulls the excess sheet off of the floor, draping it over her arm.

.

"You're looking mighty fresh today—and I'm not talking about clean, Donna." Fez gives her his best stallion face.

.

The redhead stumbles toward them and sits on the couch, worming her way between her two roommates. She reaches forward and lifts Fez's coffee mug out of his hands and drinks. "Thanks."

.

"Hey! That was _my_ mocha!" he whines.

.

Donna takes a sip and winces. "Do you have to turn everything into candy?" she moans.

.

Fez looks at her blankly. "Yes!" he snaps as he grabs the mug back from her hands and protectively scurries to the kitchen with it.

.

Jackie hands Donna her mug. "Here, you can have some of mine" she offers.

.

She looks at the little one suspiciously as she drinks her beverage. Jackie isn't willingly generous for no reason. She wonders what the strings will be in this case. "Thanks" she mumbles from beneath the lip of the cup.

.

"So...?" Jackie waits anxiously.

.

Aha. She should have known this would be about gossip. Her giant friend peeks guiltily at her from inside the mug. "I wish I could tell you something, but I just don't know."

.

The brunette's eyebrows raise in alarm. "You don't know or you don't remember?"

.

Sheepishly, Donna detaches her lips from the side of the glass. "Both?"

.

She shakes her head angrily. "I knew I should've stopped you from dropping acid with that guy."

.

"What about you? You're like Bianca Fucking Jagger at The Mudd Club, doing lines off your boyfriend's ass!" she retorts.

.

"No no no" she shakes her finger in Donna's face. "I am not the one who fucked a stranger last night, and I would never do lines off of somebody's ass. That's unsanitary and you know it" she huffs, briefly flashing back to the memory of licking whipped cream off of Steven's ass. She shakes her brain free of the ghost.

.

"Okay, Gia Carrangi" she snarks as she pretends to wipe coke residue off of Jackie's nose.

.

Jackie smiles lovingly at her friend and places her hand over her heart. "You think I look like a supermodel? That's so sweet, Donna."

.

"That's what you took away from that?" Donna shakes her head in disgust. "What happened with that guy last night?"

.

"We just slept together! I mean, we slept next to each other—that's it. We made out a little, he tried to grope me a bit, we smoked some weed and we crashed." she explains.

.

An evil smile works it's way across Donna's porcelain face. "And what did Fez get up to?"

.

Trying to be a good friend, Jackie very poorly attempts to make her face look neutral and shrugs with faux ignorance.

.

"So you're telling me he didn't hook up with Alex? Hmm. He looked really into him" she says throwing her hands up in an 'oh well' gesture.

.

The two women have a game of chicken, seeing who breaks first.

.

Donna slams the mug down on the table and smirks. "That's how you're gonna play it, huh Burkhart? I mean seriously. The girl had an Adam's apple the size of a small MacIntosh!"

.

"I know! Right? How could he not see it?" she shrieks a little too loudly.

.

"What did he say when he found out? Was he pissed off?" she prods, wanting to know all the details.

.

"Actually...he was pretty cool with it" she mentions, breezily.

.

She cocks her head and looks at her tiny friend in disbelief. "You're telling me Fez knowingly fucked a guy?"

.

Jackie shushes her. "He's in the kitchen you amazon, show some discretion" she admonishes. "...and no, he didn't. At least I don't think he did. I'm pretty sure it didn't get that far...at least on Fez's end."

.

"And he's okay with it?" she grabs the brunette's arm in confidence.

.

"He is" she discloses. "He said if the candy is sweet he will 'eat it' regardless of what it is" she grabs her friend's arm back and squeezes it with shocked amusement.

.

"Wow" Donna leans back into the couch, mystified. "I guess Gertrude Stein was right: 'A mouth is a mouth is a mouth'."

.

"And candy is candy" Jackie grins in compliance.

.

* * *

.

Eric, now sporting a black eye, stands on one of the floating docks at the marina with his duffel bag in hand. Delroy,Wendell and Bowie unrelentingly peer at him with grim expressions, while their mother, Marie, cries hysterically in Delroy's arms.

.

"I can't believe you're letting one bad lay run you out of town" he says, shaking his head with dismay.

.

"It's not about the girl, man" Eric says, pleading his case. "Not that one, anyway..." he admits, his gaze averted toward the water.

.

"He misses his woman" Bowie concludes. "La Bella Donna. You can't reason with a man in love" he shrugs, accepting the disappointing turn of events.

.

"I don't know why you're wasting your time chasing after one woman when there are so many lovely ladies out there to choose from" the bald brother scowls.

.

"Wendell, you don't choose somebody to love, they choose you, man" Bowie informs him while peering over his dark sunglasses, earning him a 'WTF?' look from his brother.

.

"This is all bullshit" Delroy frowns, kicking a rock into the water. "I mean, I wasted all that time training you, only to have you leave us" he pouts as he tightens his grip around his sobbing mother.

.

"Who is gonna take care of ya, Eric? You don't have no money" Marie informs him, hoping it will sway his decision to leave.

.

Delroy sighs. "Yeah he do" he tells her as he hands his new friend an envelope filled with cash. "It's not gonna get you too far, but it'll get you started."

.

Eric presses his lips together, trying hard not to turn into a blubbering mess at this touching show of friendship. "I—I don't know what to say..." he says, gesturing to all of them. I'd probably be dead in a gutter somewhere if you all hadn't taken me in."

.

"Hell yeah, you would" Wendell laughs for a moment until he notices the gate open up on his buddy's ship.

.

The shaggy-haired man turns to see what's caught his friend's attention. "Oh" his face falls.

.

Marie leaves the comfort of her eldest son's embrace and throws her arms tightly around her unoffical foster son. "We're always here if ya need something. You always have a mama in Jamaica."

.

One tears manages to escape his eye, which he wipes away quickly. Delroy slaps him on the back and nods his tidings, as he's not one for long goodbyes.

.

Wendell grabs the tall boy roughly and lifts him off the ground. "Don't be a stranger, eh?"

.

Eric smiles. "Don't _you_ be a stranger. You always have a place to stay with me in New York. Assuming _I've_ found a place to stay, that is." he grimaces comically.

.

The bald man points his hand. "I may just take you up on that. I hear the girls in New York know how to show a man a good time..." he wiggles his eyebrows as Delroy smacks him for talking so loose in front of their mom.

.

Finally, Eric's attention shifts toward Bowie, serene as usual. "I'm gonna miss you most of all Scarecrow" Eric fake cries as he throws his arms dramatically around Bowie's neck.

.

The boys break up laughing as Marie scolds them for ruining the mood.

.

Bowie throws an arm over his good friend's shoulders and whispers in his ear. "I hear New York City is expensive" he says as he nudges a small doctor's satchel toward Eric's feet. "In case that envelope doesn't get you very far, this is your backup plan" he grins.

.

"What's in that bag, Bowie?" Marie frowns, knowing her sons are usually up to no good.

.

"Just some Blue Mountain coffee beans, ma. Thought he might like to take a little bit of Jamaica back with him to the States" he winks at Eric conspiratorially. "What a fi yu, cyaan be un fi yu." [English translation: What is yours will always be yours.]

.

Eric smiles knowingly and lifts the satchel.

.

* * *

.

Hyde sits behind the desk in his office with his feet up, reviewing some papers while smoking a cigarette laced with pot.

.

Since the shooting, he's mostly worked out of the Grooves Live! Offices, headquarters to the subsidiary company that Angie and he started a few years ago. They primarily sponsor and broadcast free live concert series and then sell the videos and cassette recordings under their own record label. It gives fans a chance to hear their favorites in concert without having to search around for a bootleg version.

.

In the past two years, they hosted five concert series with increasing success, and for once, Hyde's timing has been spot on. After seeing "The Song Remains the Same" he fell in love with the genre. "The Last Waltz" only made his appetite stronger, and with MTV launching, the public's appetite for live concert footage has been positively voracious.

.

Angie knocks on the door, giving him a start. He pulls his legs down and clears his throat. "Yeah?"

.

She opens the door and starts coughing. "Jesus Steven, open a window or something!" She walks over to the window, turns the lock and pushes it open.

.

He looks at his sister with interest. "Hey. Whaddaya know. I didn't even realize those things worked" he grins.

.

She rolls her eyes at him and waves the smoke out of the window with one of his folders. "You're at work, not a hookah lounge" she tuts disapprovingly.

.

"One of the benefits of running my own business is that I can run the business _from_ a hookah lounge if it so pleases me" he kicks his feet back up on the desk smugly, to prove a point.

.

She raises an eyebrow and shoots him a look that makes the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He casually removes his legs from the desk, like it's his own idea. "Let me remind you that you own 50% of this business, not all. If you want to work in a hookah lounge, you're going to have to walk your little butt down to Kezdie Avenue and go find one."

.

His bravado flags. "I was done anyway. Whatever" he grumbles under his breath and he crosses his arms defensively across his chest.

.

She perches herself on the edge of her brother's desk and gloats. "Anyway, like, as I was about to say before I was so rudely asphyxiated..."

.

Hyde exhales sharply. "Get to the point, killjoy."

.

Ignoring him, she continues. "...rumor around the office is that you're trying to work something out with MTV for April."

.

"Spring break I Ft. Lauderdale might be fun" he coyly grins.

.

She nods her head. "Riiiiight. And this has nothing to do with wanting to see Jackie again" she says sarcastically.

.

Hyde leans forward. "Ya know, I completely forgot she worked for MTV" he glowers, almost daring her to call him out.

.

Unluckily for him, Angie is no shrinking violet. "Mmm-hmm. Let's pretend for a second that I'm buying this—what do you think is going to happen? She'll take one look at you and run across the beach into your arms while wearing a bikini?"

.

He zones out for a moment, imagining this very scenario with a genuine smile on his face.

.

"Steven!" his sister calls sharply. "Are you letting your penis make business decisions for you?" she challenges.

.

Offended, he stands to overtake her in stature. "I'm not gonna lie and say I haven't thought about the possibility of seeing her again, okay? I'm not an idiot though. This is a good idea and you know it" he bangs his hand on the top of his desk to make a point, sending a few paperclips flying over the edge.

.

Angie's face softens. "Look bro, I know how much you love her..."

.

He shakes his head. "I never said..."

.

She holds her hand up to his face. "Puh-lease" she scoffs. "I'm on board with the idea, it's a good one."

.

"It's a great one" he brags.

.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves" she smooths down the sides of her hair. "I'm not objecting to the event, I'm worried about you as a sister" she says earnestly, her tone gentle.

.

He looks at her like she has three heads. "Why are you worried about me? I'm cool." He knows he's been busted, but there's no way he's admitting to anything, though it feels nice to have an actual family member care about his well-being for once.

.

"You haven't gone out on one date since she left" she reminds him.

.

"Yeah? Well maybe I want to focus on my career for once" he snaps. "Besides, all of the women in Chicago look like hookers." he complains, flashing back with a shudder to the actual hooker that he accidentally 'hired' to go down on him.

.

"Right, but the women in New York City don't, do they?" she teases.

.

His mouth turns down into a scowl. "Are you finished?"

.

"I'm good. I just have one question for you—do you want me to come with you to NYC next week the your meeting?" she wonders, batting her eyelashes.

.

The corners of his mouth turn up. "You want to go shopping, don't you?"

.

"Maybe..." she demurs. "But really I just want to meet Eddie Murphy" she squeals, snapping her fingers in excitement.

.

He can't help but smile at her enthusiasm. "All right. Go on then. But I'm not hanging out with you once we get there, because your dorkiness will cramp my style."

.

"Oh Steven, I'm sure you've already been told this, but you have no style" she laughs as she walks out of his office.

.

As soon as his door shuts, he lights up again and pulls the window shut out of spite.

.

The phone rings and he leans over and hits the intercom button. "Yeah?"

.

* * *

.

Eric grips the phone nervously in his right hand and the doctor's satchel in his left. "Hey stranger".

.

Hyde's eyes grow wide as he picks up the receiver and presses it to his ear. "Forman? Is that you, man?"

.

"The one and only" he answers as he draws a heart in the sand with the toe of his shoe. "At least I think...though I guess there could be, like, twelve of us out there and I wouldn't know it" he muses "Though I suppose I could always run into one of them...".

.

Hyde moves the receiver from his ear and grimaces at it before placing it back.

.

"I'm rambling, right? I'm a little nervous" he admits.

.

Hyde laughs. "You should be _very_ nervous, my friend. You have at least four people waiting to string you up like the pig you are when you get back."

.

He swallows hard. "Yeah, I know."

.

"Where are you, man?" he asks with genuine concern as he leans forward. "Are you okay—I mean, what happened? You had us kind of, um...worried." he cringes as he hears himself talk to his surrogate brother like that, but he figures Forman is soft and might run off again if he thinks everybody hates him.

.

"I'm in Miami" he says as he tries to adjust his Panama hat, which he almost knocks off with the phone. "I'm okay, if you don't include the nervous breakdown" he assures his friend. "What about you, Hyde? You were shot! I mean...I can't believe you were fucking shot!" he screams into the phone. "That would be so cool if it weren't for the whole almost dying thing."

.

"Yeah, that part kind of sucked, but hey, I'll always have the scar to show off to the ladies" Hyde remarks as he rubs his hand over the scar on his hip. "I'm still limping, but I gave up the crutch two weeks ago. That thing was the fucking devil" he grouses, toking once more.

.

"I thought the devil was a 5'2" hot chick with a quick temper and a mean shin-kick" he jokes. "I miss her" he says seriously as his green eyes soften to a pale jade. "She probably wants to kill me too, huh?" he wonders, knowing this is as close to asking about Donna as he has the right to do.

.

If he can find out about Jackie, he can get to Donna somehow. He's dying to know what she's doing, and the best source of that intel is most likely his little padawan.

.

Hyde bristles at his friend's use of the word hot to describe his woman...well, the woman he wishes were his woman. Fuck. "I think her desire to kill you has been usurped by her desire to kill me, so you can rest easy, my friend." he sighs and takes a drag off the spliff.

.

Eric shakes his head in anger. "What did you do to her, man?" he barks angrily, remembering the unbelievable mess she was when they left Point Place together a few years ago.

.

"How do you know I did anything? How do you know she's not just freaking out over nothing like she exists to do?" he questions, trying to bluff his way through this confrontation. He has enough to deal with having Jackie and Donna pissed at him, he doesn't feel the need to explain himself to the 'grand deserter'.

.

"Because you're you, and you're apparently allergic to being nice to her or something" he accuses sharply, before changing his tone. "Look man, I don't want to argue with you, I'm sorry. I don't have too many coins left and I'm worried this call's going to cut out soon" he looks over his shoulder, worried that he's being cased by a thief. "Look, I need to get out of here. Can you help?"

.

"Where are you trying to get to?" he asks.

.

"Is Donna in New York?" he responds.

.

There's a pregnant pause. "Yeah, she's there. Living with Fez and Jackie."

.

Eric furrows his brow, certain that he's just imagined that. "I'm sorry—what?"

.

"They all live together. The three of them made up in a gang bang of kumbaya and now they're shacking up together in the big city" he informs him, with a definite edge to his voice.

.

"...o-kay" the skinny man breathes as he processes this new data. "I'd like to go to New York then. I don't have the money now, but I should be able to pay you back really soon" he promises, while rubbing the side of the satchel with the palm of his hand.

.

"I was supposed to be heading out there myself next week, but I'm thinking I'd like to check out the clubs there beforehand. Wanna meet me?" he grins, happy to have his friend back. "You can crash at my hotel" he offers.

.

"Are you inviting me to a sleepover?" he coos jokingly, causing Hyde to roll his eyes hard. "Seriously though man, you have no idea how badly I want to meet up with you" Eric says, getting choked up at the idea of seeing all of his friends again.

.

Hyde wrinkles his nose. "All right, settle down Erica. I'm just asking you to meet with me, not marry me" he cracks, taking a hit off the roach.

.

"Are you saying I'm ugly?" Eric laughs heartily.

.

The Zenmaster loses his composure and joins his buddy in a chuckle. "Only when you're in a dress, man, so leave that shit at the airport. I'll put a ticket under your name at MIA."

.

"Hey wait—um, I was thinking it might be more scenic to take the train up" he suggests, overtly sketchy in his request. "No bag screening and such."

.

Hyde raises an eyebrow. "What are you importing, Eric Forman?"

.

"Just a little Jamaican Blue Mountain, man" he tells him apprehensively. "You'll see."

.

'Yes I will' his friend thinks to himself. He flinches as his joint burns his fingertips and flicks the remnants of its ashes into the ether.

.

**A/N – I came up with a fun idea to turn this fic on it's head for the next fic. It wouldn't be a part of this trilogy, but it would be almost an inverse of this particular story. Sound interesting? **

**.**

**Thanks SO much to all of you who have been leaving reviews (PLEASE CONTINUE - they seriously make my day!). I'm really flattered at how anxious everybody is to read the next chapter. I'll try to make it a saucy one!**


	21. Chapter 21

**Full disclosure—I used to work for MTV/VH1 in the late 90's/early 00's. Kind of a slave labor camp of hot-looking and weird 20 somethings who got paid barely enough to live above the poverty level, but the perks were awesome! It would have been really cool to work there in the early 80's though, right?**

**.**

**Sorry—no sMut in this chapter, but I _promise_ I'll write some into the next one. I know how much you all love your sexytimes. This chapter is kind of a transition chapter, setting you up for the next phase of the story.**

**.**

**HAPPY LABOR DAY!**

**.**

**CHAPTER 21**

.

Donna sits in a salon chair admiring her reflection in a large mirror. Fez approaches her from behind and starts examining her hair.

.

"Your hair is flat" he declares in a disgust-laden voice.

.

Donna is wide-eyed. "I'm guessing flat is...bad?"

.

"It's not the 70's anymore Big Red, natural is out and glamour is in!" he says with a hand gesture that hints at this being a rehearsed speech he's given millions of times before. "Do you want to be out or in?" he challenges her.

.

She looks at him for the answer then tentatively guesses. "...in?"

.

"You bet your sweet sweet ass you do" he tells her, while circling her chair in a predatory manner.

.

"So what do you suggest I have done?" she asks.

.

"I want carte blanche" he demands calmly.

.

The redhead looks mildly alarmed. "But Fez-"

.

"I said carte blanche!" he snaps as he walks to the back to get his supplies.

.

Donna knows she should probably be more nervous than she is, but she's ready for a change. Every time she looks in the mirror she sees the same girl in all of her old pictures with Eric, and she's sick of looking like that girl. It only reminds her of what she once had.

.

However, she went blonde for a year and it turned out to be the worst year of her life. When she changed back to red, her life returned to normal...until now. Maybe another change will push her in the right direction again? It's too confusing to track, but she knows she needs to do something to look as different as she's been feeling.

.

* * *

.

Hyde steps out of a cab in Times Square and heads toward the MTV building on 44th street. He's only been in the city for a few hours now, but he feels more energized than he has in a long time. This has nothing to do with the possibility of seeing Jackie, of course. Nothing at all. He hasn't even thought about her in at least...five minutes.

.

He walks past a number of skin shops and shakes his head in amazement, wondering how they're able to operate out in the open like that. In Kenosha, the peep shows and nudie bars have to operate on the outskirts of town. But this is New York, and apparently the people here are so badass that they walk past hookers on their way to work without batting an eye. Hyde suddenly feels slightly less cool than he did before he arrived.

.

He pushes open the heavy entrance doors and takes the escalator to the lobby of the building. An escalator to the lobby—that's how freakin' big this place is! Grooves Live has a pretty sweet office building in the center of town, but it's nothing like this.

.

After taking the elevator to the 40th floor, he checks himself in with the receptionist and takes a seat. There are monitors _everywhere, _like something out of Logan's Run. He's going to have to crib some of this style for the Grooves offices, because this place is a cool factory.

.

As he waits, he absentmindedly watches John Cougar strut down a dirt road wearing black leather chaps, a call girl on each arm to the strains of "Hurts So Good". Not bad for a guy from his part of town, but there's nobody who can pull off leather chaps. Not even Hendrix.

.

The secretary calls his name and leads him into a corner office to meet with the VP of original programming.

.

"I like what you've done with the place" Hyde tells him as he shakes his hand.

.

"Well, the inmates are kind of running the asylum here, but it seems to work" he laughs as he gestures for Hyde to sit. "Before we jump into things, I wanted to let you know that I had a chance to look over the proposal and we're all feeling pretty positive about the event."

.

Hyde audibly breathes a sigh of relief. "Yeah? That's cool." he nods, waiting for this guy to give him more detail.

.

"The only sticking point right now for us is the location. We're trying to keep costs down, so if we figure out a way to do it in the NYC area, you've got yourself a deal" he smiles as he cocks an eyebrow toward Hyde, signaling he'd like a new pitch.

.

He runs his hands along the top of his jeans and thinks fast. "What about Jones Beach?" he suggests. "Can you get permits for us to do it there?"

.

The VP chuckles. "I can if you can you convince a bunch of hot girls to wear bikinis in New York in chilly April?"

.

Hyde leans in. "How hot are we talking?" he jokes.

.

The man leans back and gestures toward the television monitor in his office. "That hot."

.

The man with the sunglasses turns his head to check out the goods, only to find the 'goods' to be his feisty 5'2" ex-girlfriend doing a live man-on-the-street interview segment. His eyes widen. She looks even more beautiful than he remembers, but he thinks that every time he lays eyes on her.

.

"Hot right?" he smirks knowingly. "We picked her up in Chicago."

.

"Yeah, I know" he says without thinking, eyes glued to the monitor.

.

* * *

.

_**-on the television-**_

_._

Jackie stands on the corner of 44th Street and Broadway, holding a microphone, randomly interviewing standers by.

.

She stops a group of passing drunk college boys and asks "Who's the bigger 'loser of the week' - the idiots who stole Ronnie Van Zant's gravestone in Florida or Ozzie Osbourne for relieving himself on the Alamo in Texas?"

.

"The gravestone dudes, for sure!" a guy with a backwards baseball cap screams into her mic. "That was just malicious, you know? A total dick move! Can I say dick on air?" he looks to his friends for confirmation, but they are too busy giggling while trying to take a peek down Jackie's shirt. "Ozzie, man...it's okay, sometimes when you gotta go you gotta go." he shrugs and then tries to wrap his arm around her waist.

.

"Well guys, you heard it here first—defacing a famous person's grave makes you a bigger loser than defiling a national treasure. As you've all no doubt heard, Ozzy is having a big month. First the bat incident and now Peegate. We at MTV have a little tip for you Ozzie, remember to take a pee break _before _visiting your next historic landmark. This is Jackie Burkhart, back to you, Kurt!" she smiles widely until the red light on the camera goes off.

.

* * *

.

**- _in the MTV offices -_**

.

The VP chuckles a bit. "Not bad, right? She's pretty good at her job too. Initially we hired her because of the way she looks, but she's really surprised us."

.

"Where is this being filmed?" Hyde asks, trying his hardest to sound casual.

.

"Just out there" he responds. "Why don't you take a look for yourself?" he offers.

.

Hyde stands and walk toward the window nervously. He peers down and witnesses Jackie giving the guy she just interviewed a swift elbow to the gut, forcing him to release her immediately and crumple to the ground. That warm feeling he gets in his gut when she's around immediately fires back up again, and watching her kick some dipshit's ass only makes that warmth burn hotter.

.

He smiles as he watches her smooth out her hair and walk over to the camera man for a moment to chat as if nothing ever happened.

.

"Somebody is smitten. You'll have to get in line, buddy, because half the guys here are waiting to take a crack at her" he discloses, which quickly turns that warm feeling in Hyde's gut into red hot rage.

.

"Are we good to go with this Jones Beach thing?" he asks, eager to get outside and 'run into' Jackie.

.

"Have Angie get me the adjusted rundown and I'll have a line producer draw up a new budget for you" he tells him, standing up to shake his hand.

.

Hyde smiles and gives the guy a firm handshake. "Thanks for meeting with me man. I'm really looking forward to working with you guys."

.

He nods. "Likewise. I was a big fan of your Tom Petty concert, so I feel good about us hooking up. I'll give you a call in a few days to hammer out the details."

.

"Talk to you soon" he says with a head nod and turns to leave the office. As he walks toward the elevator doors, his heart stars beating as hard as Bonham hammering out "Moby Dick".

.

She may be just outside the building, but she's a million miles farther than that in reality. What the hell is he going to say to her that she would actually take seriously. That is, if she doesn't go running for the hills the moment she lays eyes on him. How many more ways can he possibly fuck this up than he already has. Then again, he's running out of jackass material, so this has to go well solely based on probability and odds.

.

* * *

.

Out in the middle of the intersection, Jackie wraps with the producer and hands him her mic. From the corner of her eye she notices Michael, who is waiting for her on the sidelines. She skips over to him and he envelopes her in his arms, pulling her close. "Hey baby" he whispers in her ear, evoking a warm tingling into her chest.

.

"Hey" she responds. "You here to rescue me?"

.

"Are you done for the day?" he asks, his aquamarine eyes hinting at the promise of a surprise.

.

"I may have to go back at some point to record a little voice over, but other than that I'm free" she tells him as she winds her arms around his neck.

.

"Wanna see a matinee?" he offers. "A friend of mine is in it, so we'd get in for free. Good tickets too."

.

"I'd love to!" she squeals. "I haven't been to a show in New York yet and no boy has ever taken me to the theater before in Wisconsin. Is that sad or am I just an unsophisticated hick from the Midwest?"

.

He stops to think for a minute. "You're definitely not a hick, unless hicks wear Gucci. It _is_ sad though, but only because you've clearly had a run of crappy boyfriends who don't know how to treat a woman."

.

"Well, you're right about that" she purses her lips in thought.

.

He kisses her gently. "Maybe your luck is about to change?"

.

Her eyes light up and she kisses him back hard. "Maybe it is."

.

"Come on" he says as he pulls her onto his back for a piggyback ride. "I'll even swing for a slice of Ray's before we get there if you're nice."

.

Jackie furrows her brows. "Hey! I'm always nice!"

.

Michael laughs. "No, you're not, but that's why I like you."

.

* * *

.

Hyde exits the building and turns in a circle to get his bearings. He quickly spots the cameraman and crew packing up their gear and jogs over to them. "I'm looking for Jackie Burkhart, is she here?"

.

"Sorry" the grip says as he coils a wire in his hand. "You literally just missed her."

.

"Fuck" he exhales, running his hand through his hair. "Do you know where she went?"

.

"No. Her boyfriend came to pick up up and then sort of threw her on his back and rode off with her. Some guys know how to sweep a lady off her feet, I guess" he shrugs.

.

"Her boyfriend?" he repeats in disbelief.

.

"Aw shit. I didn't get her in trouble did I? I know MTV likes to keep the on-air hotties 'single' but I figured the suits knew she had a boyfriend since he's picked her up every day this week." he grumbles. "Hey man, can you keep this between us? Jackie's a nice girl and I like my job."

.

Hyde numbly nods and wanders down the block going nowhere.

.

* * *

.

Donna waits anxiously in the salon chair for Fez to finish working on his masterpiece. She kneads her hands nervously and shifts in her chair, gazing occasionally at the mirror, which her friend has covered up with a spare smock.

.

"Ugh. If you're going to have ants in your pants, at least have the decency to take them off!" Fez complains as he sprays his creation with copious amounts of hairspray.

.

"Are you done yet?" she coughs. "I haven't spent this much time in a chair since my SAT's" she frowns.

.

"True beauty doesn't happen overnight" he edifies.

.

Alarmed, her body becomes rigid. "I have to stay here overnight?"

.

Fez laughs. "No, you annoying bitch. It's just an expression. Jeez, Jackie was right when she called you a hayseed." He turns her chair around to face him, then reaches over and pulls the smock down from the mirror. "Behold!" he announces as he turns her chair around to face the mirror.

.

Donna stares at herself intently for a full minute without saying a word.

.

Fez taps his foot nervously, waiting for a reaction. "Well?"

.

She smiles giddily. "I love it! I just can't believe that's me in the mirror! Thank you Fez!"

.

She tosses her newly permed hair around, fingers luxuriating in the big, sausage curls her tresses now sport.

.

"Ai! Stop touching it. I just set it" he pouts. "You shouldn't wash your hair for about two days, though from what Jackie tells me about you, that should be no problem."

.

Donna rolls her eyes, then moves them back to the mirror to admire her own image. "I feel like Brooke Shields!"

.

"Pretty" he says as he touches her curls. "Well, I gotta go meet Alex."

.

Donna's expression falls as she hears news of his departure. "Hey Fez, can I talk to you for a minute?"

.

He shrugs and pulls himself onto his work station to sit.

.

"About Alex...I know, okay?" she discloses, hoping he doesn't get mad.

.

"Okay" he nods. "And?"

.

"Well, um...I'm not judging. I want you to do whatever makes you happy, but...I'm concerned" she tentatively remarks.

.

The foreigner's mouth settles into a flat line. This whole situation is new to him and he doesn't really feel like dissecting it or explaining why he's pursuing it. "What are you 'concerned' about?"

.

"Um...there's this thing going around and I'm worried you might, I don't know, get sick" she shrinks, hoping this doesn't incite his wrath.

.

Fez is completely confused. "What thing?"

.

"It's called GRID and it's killing people, Fez. Mostly gay men" she informs him. "I've been reading a lot about it in The Village Voice."

.

"But I'm not gay" he tells her, hoping this excludes him from the group of men at risk.

.

Donna's face looks pained. "I don't know that it matters if you're bi or gay, so long as you're sleeping with guys. They think it's sexually transmitted."

.

"I'm not sleeping with Alex" he says, "We're just fooling around."

.

The redhead is surprised. She's sure she heard him climaxing through their thin walls. "But Fez, I heard you two..." she insists delicately.

.

"I'm not having sex, it was just a blow job, and it was Alex who was giving one to me" he tries to assuage her fears.

.

Now more confused than ever, her expression is pinched. "You're not, you know, reciprocating in any way?"

.

Fez makes the gesture for a hand job. "I told Alex I didn't think I'd be able to go further than that. I just...I don't know. I like her, but I'm not really _into_ guy parts, so I don't know if I could, you know, give her what she's giving me. I mean, I don't want to rule anything out, but men don't exactly turn my head when they walk down the street. Not like women do, at least. I thought she was a girl when I met her." he explains.

.

"Just promise me that you won't..." she has absolutely no idea how to phrase what she wants to say without embarrassing him, but his health is at stake and she's not going to let her bashfulness be the reason Fez gets sick. "Just don't stick anything in anything, if you get what I'm saying. And don't give any blow jobs."

.

Fez buries his face in his hands. This is the single most awkward conversation he's ever had in his life. "I wasn't planning on it" he assures her. "I'm not planning on changing my lifestyle Donna, I just wanted to experiment, you know, see where this goes." he says. "I don't want to let society tell me who I'm allowed to be attracted to, but it just so happens I prefer women, okay. I'm not saying things won't get that far with Alex - I don't know, but I'm only going to do what I'm comfortable doing- - - and that does not include...what you were talking about."

.

Donna lets out a sigh of relief. "I really just wanted to warn you. I mean, I like Alex, and I'm sure she's not sick, but you never know, right? She might not even know." she asserts. "I just...I know I'm not the warmest person all the time, but I do love you, and I'm just looking out for you."

.

Fez hops off his station and brings Donna in for a hug. "Thank you, my beautiful empress, it means a lot. I don't have too many people who care about me living in this country, so it means something that you're worried, and I promise Fez will be careful."

.

She smiles as she grabs Fez's face on both sides. "You'd better be, or living with me will put you at more risk than any STD." she teases.

.

* * *

.

Jackie sits in the fourth row in the center of the Palace Theater, gripping a Playbill.

.

Michael kneels at her feet and hands her a glass of champagne.

.

"Thank you." She takes the glass and then the corners of her mouth turn down. "Where's yours?" she asks, looking around.

.

"I have to run backstage for a little bit. Are you okay here on your own?" he checks, hoping his desertion won't upset her too much.

.

Jackie's gut reaction is to scream at him, accuse him of abandoning her and of not liking her enough to be a good date. For some reason though, she feels perfectly content. Is she becoming less insecure and more mature or is Michael just really good at making her feel at ease? Or maybe she doesn't care that much about him?

.

"Take your time" she tells him as she kisses him gently on the lips. "I have the best seat in the house. I'll be fine" she assures him.

.

He runs his fingers through her dark curls and kisses her back. "Thanks for being such a doll" he says as he takes off for the interior stage door.

.

Doll? It feels weird to her hearing that word tumble off of another man's lips. Her face falls and a sick feeling replaces her earlier one of contentment. She opens the Playbill for distraction and her mouth forms a perfect 'O' as she discovers a little surprise while reading the cast list.

.

Michael said earlier that they were able to get tickets because he has a friend in the show. Well he should—in fact, he should have lots of friends in the show considering he's starring in it. She runs her finger over his name in the cast list and takes a sip of her champagne. In a million years, she never imagined having a date like this.

.

* * *

.

"Janet, I'm home!" Hyde calls out as he slams the door to his hotel room shut.

.

"Jack!" Eric stubs out his joint and emerges from the bathroom looking a bit raggedy, yet tanned and healthy. "How'd you know I was here already?"

.

"They told me you checked in when I went to see if I had any messages" he informs him as she crosses to give Eric a bro hug. "It's good to see you, man. Really good." Finding himself oddly emotional at their reunion, Hyde claps his friend on the back hard.

.

"Ow. Damn Hyde, I'm dealing with a slight sunburn situation back there" he complains, however unable he is to wipe the smile off his face.

.

"You're approaching the Pam Burkhart-level of tan. Were you doing fieldwork in Jamaica or something?" he jokes, chuckling with amusement.

.

Eric is uncharacteristically quiet for a moment, then sits on the bed. "Can't say I find the Pam Burkhart comparison flattering. Once you've seen a woman face-plant into a plate of flan, she doesn't exactly hold the same allure," he deadpans, as he adjusts his hat.

.

"Hey, what's with the Father Mulcahey hat?" he asks, pointing to his Panama. "Is this like, a new affectation or just another example of you being really uncool? Not sure that hat flies in New York."

.

The beach bum fake laughs. "First of all, you sound like the devil. And second of all, I'll have you know Teddy Roosevelt used to wear one of these. And he lived in New York City."

.

"Yeah, that doesn't exactly help your cause" he smirks as he sits on the edge of the desk.

.

"How'd your meeting go?" he inquires.

.

Hyde scratches his head and tried to erase the words 'Jackie' and 'boyfriend' from his mind. "Not bad at all. We're gonna do the series in New York now," he tells him.

.

Eric leans in. "Seems like you'll be spending quite a bit of time here, then."

.

"Yeah, don't get any ideas, she has a boyfriend" he grumbles.

.

"How do you know that? You've only been here a few hours. Damn you're fast with the intel" he laughs.

.

"She works at MTV, remember?" he reminds his skinny friend.

.

"You saw her? What did she say? Does she have any information about Donna?" he excitably berates Hyde with questions.

.

"Slow down, Esmeralda. I saw her but she didn't see me" he frowns. "By the time I caught up with her she was gone. One of her crew members said her _boyfriend_ picked up up from work" he recounts bitterly as he fights to keep his Zen intact.

.

"Oh" he remarks with disappointment. "I'm sorry to hear that, man."

.

Hyde shrugs. "Bound to happen, right? I mean she's hot and she's, you know..." his voice trails off as he feels a sharp tug in his gut.

.

"Well, I don't think you should give up. I'm not giving up on Donna." he declares with the resolution of a man enlisting to go to war.

.

"I hate to break it to you Forman, but they've both given up on us" he says as his features clench tightly to avoid betraying his feelings.

.

"That" Eric smiles "is where you and I differ, my friend. There's an old Jamaican saying that goes 'That, which is yours, will always be yours' and I believe it. Donna is mine and she'll always be mine..." he declares. "...and I'll always be hers" he admits quietly.

.

"Wish I shared your dumb optimism, Opie, but I live in the real world where moms abandon their kid to fend for themselves when they're only in high school." he quips.

.

Eric's brows knit as he gestures in the air. "Is that the same real world where that same abandoned kid gets taken in and treated like a son by the kindly parents of their best friend?" he retorts.

.

Hyde sighs, knowing he's been bested. "Fine. But I'm still right about Donna and Jackie. And that reminds me, you need to call mom, because I don't feel like lying to her much longer."

.

"You seem a little tense" Forman says, green eyes flashing with mischief.

.

The Zenmaster licks his lips and steels his gaze. "You holding?"

.

"A little" he shrugs and kicks the doctor's satchel toward his best friend.

.

Hyde kneels down next to the bag and opens it. "All I see is a few bags of coffee" he gripes, disappointed.

.

Eric flips his finger in the air. "Look under the coffee" he hints with delight.

.

He removes the coffee, placing it to the side of the bag on the floor - - quickly revealing a stash the size of an overblown beach ball. His mouth falls open as he looks nervously at his buddy. "Exactly what kind of farming were you doing while you were in Jamaica?"

.

He crosses his arms over his body and smugly purses his lips. "One of my friends there thought I might benefit from having a little nest egg, you know, just to get me started."

.

"Looks like a nest egg the golden goose might lay, man." he comments, shaking his head in disbelief. "I can see now why you wanted to take the train. What are you gonna do with it all?" he asks as he runs his hands lovingly through the piles of kind bud.

.

"Besides smoke it?" he laughs. "I already took care of that" he grins as he pulls a crumples up flier from his pocket and hands it to his friend.

.

Hyde unfolds the paper and raises an eyebrow.

.

"I left some at all of the big clubs around town. I rented a locker at Penn Station. People can slip orders into the locker, and I'll do a club run on Friday night to deliver them." he explains, having already worked out all the details. "Should net me enough money to float me until I can get a job." He opens an interior pocket in the satchel and extracts a joint, lights it then hands it to Hyde.

.

"How are people in the clubs supposed to know you're the guy with the locker?" the afro'd man asks skeptically as he takes a drag.

.

Eric tips his hat and smirks. "I'll be the uncool guy in the Panama hat."

.

**A/N – I felt I had to include the GRID (aka what AIDS was called in the early 80's) stuff in this fic because you can't have a guy fooling around with other guys in this time period and not at least mention AIDS. This story has completely snowballed bigger than I originally anticipated, but I'm having fun making it wild, so I'll ride it out. As Hyde might say, I'm going "Wherever the beard takes me." Hope it's fun to read too. ****Let me know-by reviewing (my shameless end of the chapter appeal is so appealing, I know).**


	22. Chapter 22

**Sorry for the delay in posting. Both my little ones started school this past week (one for the first time), so I've been busy getting them set up with all of the things they need. Also, I was very determined to finish The Long Road back and just wanted to focus on getting that done so I could focus more on this.**

**.**

**To be honest, I was a little stuck with this chapter, but when I finally got inspiration it came rather quickly to me, which is usually a good sign that it worked. You'll have to let me know. FYI - I should be starting my new fic soon. I'm really trying to organize my plot well beforehand this time so I can give you all frequent updates, because I know how you love a daily update. I'm getting _really_ excited about this one and I am praying it works the way I want it to. We shall see...**

**.**

**PS-I know I keep promising sMut, but it just didn't work it's way into this chapter-so I'm sorry! I'll make it up to you with a one-shot if you don't get your fix soon. This chapter is sadly rated T for Tame.**

**.**

**Chapter 22**

.

Angie looks into a full length mirror in Hyde's hotel room and tugs at the hem of her electric blue minidress with consternation. "Is this too short?"

.

Eric, who is perched on the edge of the bed, looks at her appreciatively. "Not from where I'm sitting" he jokes, earning him a swift frog in the shoulder, courtesy of the lady's younger brother. "Ow! Jesus Hyde! I was joking!" he frowns, looking up at Angie. "That really is a nice dress though" he admits.

.

Hyde frogs his other shoulder.

.

"Fuck!" his victim grumbles. "I'm not the one who nailed your sister dude, so enough with the hitting already."

.

Angie laughs. "Don't mind him Eric, I think he's just tense from his near-miss with Jackie earlier today" she says with smugness.

.

Hyde mirrors her smile to mock her. "Yeah? Ever think I'm just tense because I'm going to have to be seen in public with you two clowns?" he leans back and lights a joint, hoping to mellow out.

.

She turns to him with one hand on a shapely hip. "Yeah? Well this clown is your only shot of getting into the Mudd Club tonight. I mean, I know I'll make it past the door, but from what I've heard, you two losers couldn't get past the velvet rope of a movie theater, even if you had tickets."

.

Eric's head jerks up in attention. "Where did you hear such nonsense?" he affects an offended glare.

.

"Don't make me embarrass you, Forman" she sighs.

.

Hyde wisely keeps his mouth shut.

.

"So how are we doing this tonight? I mean, you're not going to get me arrested for dealing. I doubt there are many people with finance degrees in prison" she guesses while putting the finishing touches on her makeup.

.

Hyde cocks an eyebrow. "I'd beg to differ."

.

Eric sits up and takes the joint from Hyde's hand. "The order slips are numbered. Once we get inside, I'm going to sit in the last stool at the farthest bar from the door. I mentioned in my flier where to find me and told them I would only release the goods to women" he explains before taking a long drag to calm his nerves.

.

Hyde stifles a laugh. "Forman" he shakes his head with amusement. "Nope. Too many low-hanging fruit. Not worth my time." he decides before snagging the cigarette back from his friend.

.

"Ha. Ha." the skinny man rolls his eyes. "You have to admit, Eric Forman makes a _pretty _well-organized drug dealer" he chuffs with pride.

.

His best friend rubs his hands over his face to wake himself up. "Man, I never thought I'd live to see the day where the words 'Forman' and 'a drug dealer' appeared in the same sentence without 'got his ass kicked by' in between them."

.

"You're really firm on this whole hat thing, huh?" Angie asks, looking at it sideways to see if it appears less bad from another viewpoint. "It's kind of Juan Valdez-esque."

.

Eric shrugs with both hands in the air. "The man knows how to make a good cup of coffee."

.

* * *

.

Jackie, Fez and (new) Michael are at the Mudd Club. Having already set up camp at a desirable table, Jackie and Fez clink champagne glasses and starts to drink.

.

"I could get used to this" Fez tells her as he downs the entire glass in one go.

.

"Slow down there, kemo sabe" she advises, a fraction of a second too late as she attempts to tip his glass back up. "The night is young."

.

"Don't come between a man and his champagne, goddess" he warns her darkly.

.

Something in Fez's eyes alarms her and she scoots her chair closer to his. "What's going on with you?"

.

He moves his shoulders as a vague response.

.

"Is Alex meeting us tonight?" she asks.

.

He nods silently.

.

Jackie bites her bottom lip as she attempts to navigate the loaded minefield that is Fez's sexuality. "Are you having second thoughts about her?"

.

He exhales. "You know, I really like her. I do. We're just getting to that point where we need to take it to the next level or break up and I'm not sure that the Fez can really go _there_, you know?"

.

She twists her lips nervously. "Yeah. I'm kind of in the same boat...well, not exactly the same, I mean, my guy is really a guy...though I guess your girl is too." Fez tightens his smile as his eyes bulge with bemusement. "I mean...ugh, this would really be a much easier discussion to have if we were high."

.

Michael wraps his long arms around Jackie's shoulders from behind. "That can be arranged. Actually, it has been arranged. I got us a little weed for tonight. You up for it?"

.

She tenses for a moment, wondering how much of their discussion he's overheard, then turns her head slightly and catches a side-glimpse of his beautiful blue eyes. "Uh, yeah! I haven't smoked up in forever. My roommates and I used to do it all the time back in high school, but our supply has kind of...dried up since then." she tells him, mad at herself for letting her mind drift back to thoughts of Steven.

.

Fez shoots her a look to let her know he can read her mind.

.

"Well, here's your new supplier" he pulls one of Eric's yellow fliers out of his back pocket and hands it to her. "I put in the order earlier today."

.

Jackie examines the flier. "Aww, buying pot from the man in the yellow hat. Curious George would be proud." She investigates the flier more closely and wrinkles her nose at what she finds there. "What's the deal with him wanting only women to make the money drop? Um, perverted much?"

.

Michael laughs and pulls up a chair. "I think it's a security measure."

.

"So...wimpy _and_ perverted. Drug dealers just aren't what they used to be" she shakes her head, pretending to be disappointed.

.

"Would you mind bringing the money to the man in the yellow hat for us?" he asks.

.

She bats her eyelashes at him. "You buying?"

.

"I think I've gotten to know you well enough to know the answer to that question is always yes" he grins.

.

She pecks his lips and smiles. "You do get me" she jokes.

.

Michael looks around the swelling crowd for a familiar face. "Donna coming tonight?"

.

"Yeah, she was just feeling a little tired so she said she'd come by after she took a power nap" she says.

.

"She bringing that guy from the other week?" he wonders, transparent with his disapproval.

.

"God, let's hope not" she sneers. "So which one of you hotties is going to take me out on the dance floor until that lumberjack gets here?"

.

Jackie's companion eyes her friend, quickly picking up on his anxious mood. "I think you'd probably have more fun dancing with Fez" he suggests.

.

Jackie pouts. "Are you sure?"

.

He takes a glimpse at the foreigner again, who seems to be off in another world. "Yeah, definitely. My legs are a little tired for standing on stage for six hours today."

.

"Six?" she questions. "I thought your show was only three hours long."

.

"You forget we perform matinees" he reminds her as he leans in and peppers a series of kisses along her collar bone.

.

Jackie melts under Michael's careful attention and curses herself for remaining so emotionally guarded with her new man. It's not his fault Steven is a jerk, and he really shouldn't have to pay for the other man's sins, but she can't just flip a switch and learn to trust men again. In science class she learned a starfish can grow back an arm if one of its limbs is lopped off. She wishes the human heart worked that way.

.

Alex breezes into the club and plops herself on Fez's lap. "Hey gorgeous" she plants a kiss on his lips before immediately pulling him out onto the dance floor.

.

"Looks like you're back on the hook again" the brunette smiles as she runs her fingers through her guy's dark locks.

.

"Fine. by. Me." he says, punctuating each word with a small kiss. "I've got the hottest chick in this place, I may as well show her off" he announces as he pulls the pixie to her feet.

.

Jackie blushes. "I haven't had a boyfriend say nice things like that to me in a long time."

.

The corner of Michael's mouth picks up into a crooked smile. "Oh, I'm your boyfriend now?"

.

Her face drops along with her stomach. She could just kick herself for letting something so stupid slip out of her mouth unfiltered. Of course he's not her boyfriend. "I...uh...I didn't mean..."

.

"You know, I was just wondering how long it would take you to call me that" he admits sweetly.

.

Her brow furrows. "You mean, you're not mad?"

.

He looks at her with incredulity. "Why would I be mad?"

.

She hesitates, feeling like the world's biggest loser for fumbling into this treacherous topic. "I just...my last boyfriend wasn't really into labels."

.

"He sounds like a major tool." He rubs his thumb on the side of her chin and dips down to look into her eyes. "You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen and definitely the smartest. Why wouldn't I want everybody to know that you're mine?"

.

A warm feeling builds in her chest as she tips her head up to look into her new boyfriend's sparkling azure eyes. "You make a very good point" she smiles before sliding her arms around his neck and pulling him to her for a passionate kiss.

.

* * *

.

_**Say, we can go where we want to  
A place where they will never find  
And we can act like we come from out of this world  
Leave the real one far behind **_

.

Fez and Alex are tearing up the dance floor to the song "Safety Dance" by Men Without Hats. They're having a blast, but Fez's apprehension about what Alex might expect from him later on is weighing on him heavily.

.

In the corner of his eye, he notices a stunning woman wearing a short blue dress that rides teasingly up her smooth, mocha-colored thighs as she strides across the club. She looks incredibly familiar, yet he can't place her face from across the room. Just then, the woman stops to survey the dance floor and a sly smile creeps across her face, instantly stealing Fez's breath away.

.

Alex notices his distraction and turns around to locate it's source. "Fez" she scowls as she looks up at him with hurt eyes.

.

He's snapped out of his trance by his date's voice. "What?" he asks, still distracted by the mystery woman, who is now walking toward the darkened bar with a man in a straw hat.

.

She roughly turns his chin to face her. "You're checking out other girls while you're dancing with me. Not cool." she frowns.

.

He panics, searching his brain for an excuse. "I was...uh, I was just looking at that man in the hat. Who wears a Panama hat to a club?" he scoffs, hoping she buys his line.

.

Her face twists as she considers this. "That is really weird. I mean, I guess it wouldn't be if we were in Cuba, but definitely an odd fashion choice for a Manhattan club."

.

Satisfied with his answer, she begins dancing again - leaving Fez's mind free to be occupied with only thoughts of his beautiful mystery woman.

.

* * *

.

Eric takes his seat at the bar as Angie orders a fuzzy navel and turns to her brother's friend. "You should probably order something so you don't look suspicious" she recommends.

.

"I didn't seem to need a pretense to get in this joint" he reminds her, recalling how the bouncers recognized his hat from the drug fliers and immediately waved him in. "I probably don't need one now" he decides smugly.

.

Angie snorts. "Suit yourself, badass."

.

He looks at her and smiles. "Alright alright. I am pretty thirsty."

.

"He'll have a beer – whatever's on tap" she tells the bartender.

.

"Make that two" he corrects her. "Where'd Hyde go?"

.

"He thought he saw Joan Jett" she rolls her eyes.

.

A blonde model-type slides into the chair next to Eric's and smiles widely. "Are you him?" she whispers.

.

He smiles. "What's your number?"

.

She looks at the palm of her hand, where the number '45' has been written in black ink and shows it to him.

.

He nods and discreetly pulls her baggie out of the messenger bag he now carries. "That'll be $20" Eric whispers into her ear like a lover would, and takes her hand in what looks like a romantic gesture as he covertly slides the baggies into her grasp.

.

She stands by his side and slides the money into the front pocket of his jeans and leans over to whisper in his ear. "It's been a pleasure" she tells him as she walks off.

.

Angie smirks. "Looks like your new job has some perks" she teases.

.

He exhales. "You know, if I could do this faster and with less romantic hand-holding, I'd be much happier" he admits.

.

She nods her approval. "You're really serious about getting Donna back, aren't you?"

.

He looks left and right before leaning into speak to her. "Do you think I would have turned myself into a drug dealer just for the hell of it?" he whispers. "I need to make money tonight so I can afford to stay here awhile, because it's going to take a long time to win her back. I'm under no false illusion that this will be easy."

.

She smiles. "I'm really impressed by your tenacity, Eric Forman" she tells him.

.

"Good, because _that_ and a suitcase filled with weed, are all I pretty much have to my name right now" he says blowing a stray hair out of his eyes.

.

A dark-haired temptress approaches the rookie dealer with her game face on. "I'm number #73" she informs him in a low voice.

.

His eyes meet Angie's. "And so it begins" he says in an ominous voice.

.

* * *

.

Michael's hands are firmly planted on Jackie's hips as he moves with her.

.

She leans her chin on his chest to rest and when she opens her eyes, she notices the silhouette of a wide-brimmed hat perched on the head of a tall man near the bar.

.

"Ooh! Ooh, I think I see the guy, you know, Curious George's daddy?" she pinches him lightly on the arm.

.

He turns and watches the exchange currently going down with great interest. "You're still up for making the drop?" he checks, not wanting to force her into risking incarceration.

.

"Whatever" she huffs. "I think I can handle one measly drug deal. I mean, who is going to cart this face off to prison?" she jokes as she gives her best 'face'.

.

He laughs and then slides $40 into her bra strap. "Okay tiger. You score and I'll roll."

.

She leans over and presses a gentle kiss on his mouth before turning to go to the bar.

.

"I'm feeling thirsty" she discloses airily as she crosses the dance floor to reach the bar.

.

Blue eyes watch her ass sway with intent as she walks away.

.

* * *

.

From behind, Jackie watches the woman before her finish up her exchange and then approaches the bar.

.

"How can I help you, m'lady?" Eric asks smoothly as he turns to greet his next customer.

.

Jackie's mouth falls open as she recognizes her wayward best friend as her newest 'connection'. "Eric!" she shrieks, startling Angie, who the brunette doesn't notice is behind her.

.

Recognizing her instantly. Angie covertly slips away to locate and warn her brother about her presence.

.

A look of alarm rings across Eric's face as he quickly places a firm hand over her mouth to prevent another outburst.

.

She shoots him a look that could kill before searing white hot pain begins to creep up his left leg.

.

"Fuck!" he yells as he releases her mouth to grab his injured shin with both hands. "I guess I should have expected that" he grumbles while rubbing the site of the kick. "Jackie! What the hell are you doing here?" he whisper-screams at her.

.

"I could ask you the same thing" she tells him angrily. "What happened, decide to cut your Carribbean vacation short?" she hisses. "Did they run of of rum punch or something?" she asks with fake concern as she punches him in the shoulder.

.

His eyes soften with contrition. "Jackie, I'm sorry. I know you're pissed off, but I can explain everything." he tells her frantically.

.

"Maybe I don't really want to hear your lame explanation" she growls. "I was worried sick for months while you fucked around on a beach somewhere. I thought you might be dead!" she yells, not caring if she draws attention to herself. "And how could you do what you did to Donna? There's nothing that could come out of your mouth that would excuse what you did to her." she tells him, her voice starting to break. "Man, I thought what Steven did was the gold standard for being a prick, but you've really risen to the challenge, haven't you?" she scowls.

.

He places his hands on the side of her shoulders and looks into her gemstone-colored eyes with sorrow. "Everything you're saying is right" he admits quietly. "I have no excuse. None that would carry any water anyway," he says as he rubs over his face with both hands.

.

An uncomfortable silence falls between them. "You seem to have built a nice career for yourself here, Eric. Kitty would be proud." she says, getting in a dig.

.

He shuts his eyes tightly with humiliation. She's completely right, as usual, and he realizes now that this is going to be far tougher than he had prepared for. If he can't even get his friend to forgive him, how the hell is he going to convince Donna?

.

Jackie takes a deep breath and decides she can't deal with her friend's betrayal right now. He dug his grave and he'll have to lie in it, but she's not going to let it ruin her night. If Eric really wants to apologize and explain himself, he'll do it the right way, in the light of day.

.

"I'm number #23" she says, her voice barely rising above an audible whisper.

.

"Jackie..." he says, wearing a pained expression.

.

"Number 23" she repeats coldly.

.

Eric digs into his bag and hands her the weed. She stands up and reaches into her bra to get the money.

.

"No charge. Obviously." he tells her as he tries desperately to get her to make eye contact with him again.

.

She takes the money out of her bra strap and throws it on the bar. "No thanks. Let's just keep it professional" she spits and promptly stomps off into the waiting arms of her boyfriend.

.

* * *

.

She hugs him tightly, choking back the tears she feels forming in her eyes. She doesn't want to cry. He doesn't fucking deserve her tears.

.

Michael forcefully pulls her back and looks into her face. "What the hell happened over there? Did that guy say something to you?" he asks with concern.

.

She shakes her head. "Let it go, Michael."

.

Now angry, he picks his head up to check the dealer out. "Who is that asshole?"

.

She swallows hard, still resisting the inevitable breakdown. "Just some guy I used to know" she whispers, almost to herself.

.

* * *

_._

Eric watches her interaction with the handsome stranger closely and tries to figure out who he is to her. It's strange to know somebody so intimately and yet know nothing about their current life.

.

Michael's eyes now burn with anger. "I think I'm going to go over and have a little chat with your old friend there" he announces.

.

Jackie places her hands on his chest to hold him back. "Please don't. Please, for me, let it go" she asks with uncharacteristic humility.

.

He holds her close and kisses the top of her head. "Okay. But if he even looks at you cross-eyed again I'm going to flatten him" he threatens.

.

She looks up at him and smiles at his protective streak. "Wanna dance?"

.

"Tainted Love" by Soft Cell comes on the speakers and the dance floor crowds.

.

_**Sometimes I feel I've got to  
Run away I've got to  
Get away  
From the pain that you drive into the heart of me**_

_**The love we share  
Seems to go nowhere  
And I've lost my light  
For I toss and turn I can't sleep at night**_

.

He smirks, impressed by her ability to shrug off what's bothering her. "You're really something, you know that?" he laughs.

.

"So I've been told" she responds coyly.

.

"Oh, okay then. Let's boogie." he grabs her arm and spins her around.

.

_**Once I ran to you (I ran)  
Now I'll run from you  
This tainted love you've given  
I give you all a boy could give you  
Take my tears and that's not nearly all  
Oh...tainted love  
Tainted love**_

.

Angie rushes an apprehensive Hyde over to the bar as Eric completes his latest transaction. He looks to his friend and wordlessly asks for guidance.

.

Eric exhales, radiating anxiety and raises his chin in the direction of the dance floor. Hyde turns to look and immediately catches sight of of his former lover, as stunning as ever in a red satin slip and not much else.

.

Jackie laughs musically as Michael swings her effortlessly around the dance floor.

.

_**Now I know I've got to  
Run away I've got to  
Get away  
You don't really want any more from me  
To make things right  
You need someone to hold you tight  
And you think love is to pray  
But I'm sorry I don't pray that way**_

.

He slides his hands over her ass and presses her body to his. They move as one as he leans over and captures her mouth with his own.

.

Hyde winces and averts his eyes. Watching her being touched by another man is fucking torture, no matter how much time has passed or what they've done to hurt each other.

.

Michael runs his hands gently down Jackie's bare arms. She gazes up at her new boyfriend seductively, like Steven never existed.

.

He can feel his jaw tense up as he observes the wanton display taking place in front of him. The way she's looking at that guy, with such tenderness...he doubts it could hurt more than if he was watching her fuck him.

.

_**Once I ran to you (I ran)  
Now I'll run from you  
This tainted love you've given  
I give you all a boy could give you  
Take my tears and that's not nearly all  
Oh...tainted love  
Tainted love**_

.

The pretty-boy lifts his pixie up off the ground and hugs her to his body. She tosses her head back with abandon, feeling the weight of the world lift from her shoulders as she rises lighter than air.

.

Then she opens her eyes - - and everything comes crashing back down around her like a lead balloon.

.

She blinks twice to make sure she's not seeing things, then wraps her arms tightly around her oblivious dance partner as he lowers her to the ground, frankly exposing the bottom of her ass as her skirt rides dangerously up her toned thighs.

.

Hyde runs his hand over his mouth as his impassive eyes penetrate her from dozens of feet away.

.

She holds his gaze for a moment, then her mouth quirks into a knowing smirk before grabbing her handsome date by the back of his head and pulling it toward her as she thrusts her tongue hunrgily into his mouth, letting her lips glide slowly over and under his as his hands reach down and caress the soft skin just under the hem of her skirt.

.

_**Don't touch me please  
I cannot stand the way you tease  
I love you though you hurt me so  
Now I'm going to pack my things and go  
Tainted love, tainted love  
Touch me baby, tainted love  
Tainted love**_

.

Hyde forces himself to watch her performance, knowing deep down this is part of his pennance. His crystal eyes glaze over defiantly as he continues his task - being her solitary audience member, almost daring her to see how far she's willing to go to punish him. How else is he going to know the depth of her hatred for him?

.

Jackie slips her hands around the waistband of Michael's jeans and hooks her thumbs into it. She perches on her toes to meet him before tipping her head back to grant free and easy access to Hyde's favorite errogonous zone.

.

As Michael feasts on her neck, she turns to look at her ex again, taunting him with a ghost of a smile and her unbroken eye contact.

.

* * *

.

At the outside perimeter of the dance floor, Donna giggles and shakes her head as she watches her best friend test the limits of acceptable PDA. She smoothes her brown leather skirt with her hands and tosses a shiny man of red hair over her shoulder before crossing the hard wood to join her friends.

.

**A/N – Again, sorry for the delay. Hopefully the confrontation lived up to your imagination. I'm trying to give Jackie a set of cajones (not literally cajones like Fez's date though!), because she's feisty, and I really think as she sees herself through other people's eyes, in the contrext of the greater population, she'd realize that she really CAN do better than Hyde, no matter how much we love him. Hopefully I can make Hyde figure out how to be a mensche!**

**.**

**Did you like it? Please leave a review and let me know what you thought. **

**.**

**PS—CRAZY planning for ther next fic (each chapter is based on a song) and I'm getting pretty excited about it. If you can guess the theme of it through the title, PM me and I'll name check you in the header of the next chapter. It's going to be called "Stop Making Sense". **


	23. Chapter 23

**I know this prequel is confusing some of you when you try to put it in context with the other two stories, so maybe it just works best on it's own—as an AU 'prequel' to a set of events that never happened on the show. Simple, right? I know that clears everything up! Seriously though, I didn't plan on doing a prequel, so it doesn't exactly match up to the character trajectory of the other two. Until I get to rewrite the others, it's really just easier to think of this as a stand-alone fic.**

**.**

**However, for some reason I'm having a lot more fun doing this one. I'm not even that into writing angst, but I get more and more into the J/H gravitational pull as I go, and it's giving me a rush making E/D less boring and more wanton. Who can resist Eric veering into 'bad boy' territory?**

**FYI-some light sMut at the very bottom of the chapter.**

**.**

**CHAPTER 23**

**.**

The song ends, and so does Jackie's bawdy, taunting performance. Michael finally notices the guy with the shades watching them from the edge of the dance floor. "Do you know that guy or something or is he just a pervert? He keeps staring at you."

.

Jackie exhales. "I do know him...and he's a pervert."

.

Her date gives her a quizzical look. "Any reason neither of you is saying hello?" he asks, getting increasingly uncomfortable with the visual game of chicken his girlfriend is currently engaged in with her 'friend'.

.

"I think he probably wants to talk to me alone" she guesses.

.

Michael shoots him a look of warning. "I'll bet he does."

.

She turns to him and places a soft hand on his chest, gently tugging at the center of his shirt. "Would you mind getting me a gin and tonic?" she pleads. "He's an old friend and he's probably just feeling a bit shy about talking to me after so long." If he only knew.

.

Against his better judgment, Michael agrees, but not before placing a searing kiss on Jackie's lips just to make his stake clear to the competition.

.

"I see you still like em man-pretty" he remarks, referring to her new boyfriend's appearance as he gestures toward his retreating figure.

.

Sick of being put on edge by Steven, she decides now is as good of a time as any to take the horse by the bit. She throws her shoulders back and steels her gaze. "What are you doing here?"

.

He slowly walks toward her, still exhibiting a slight limp. She wonders for a moment if it still hurts, but then orders herself to stop caring.

.

"Grooves is organizing a concert series." he explains. "I had a meeting with MTV."

.

She rolls her eyes. "Of course you did. Just another example of the universe exacting it's vendetta against Jackie Burkhart." she hoarsely announces to the heavens and anyone else who is listening.

.

"If it makes you feel any better doll, I'm next on that hit list" he jokes.

.

"What do you want, Steven?" she sighs, exhausted by him before they've even begun.

.

"What's his name?" he asks.

.

"Why do you care?" she snipes, then immediately has a change of heart, not wanting the situation to snowball as it usually does when they fight. She hesitates for a moment and then answers. "Michael."

.

He looks at her pointedly and then shakes his head. "Too easy. I'm gonna let that one go."

.

"How generous of you" she quips as she gathers her hair and twists it into a loose knot at the top of her head, securing it with a few bobby pins. She leans her head back and fans her neck, glistening from her stint on the dance floor, with her hand.

.

The sight of her delicate neck exposed to him nearly shakes his confidence. He tries to stop himself from staring, but it's patently out of his control. He can't believe that it was only two months ago that he was able to place his mouth all over it with free reign.

.

Joan Jett and the Blackhearts song "Crimson and Clover" starts playing on the speakers.

.

"You requested this one, didn't you?" she guesses, closing her eyes for a moment to listen.

.

He smiles at her intimate knowledge of his mind and nods. "You know my taste in women."

.

"Blonde and whorey?" she retorts.

.

He smirks at her obvious slam. "No. Brunette and sassy, just like Joan Jett. Just like you."

.

_**Ah, now I don't hardly know her  
But I think I could love her  
Crimson and clover**_

.

The flattering comment disarms her slightly and he moves in for the kill. "Wanna dance?"

.

"Steven, you don't dance" she informs him.

.

"I know" he admits. "I'm still standing here asking you though."

.

"You have a limp" she reminds him, unknowingly exposing her concern by noticing.

.

"Why do you think I picked a slow song?" he grins charmingly.

.

She fights the urge to smile. "I _know_ why you picked a slow song."

.

"Just gimme your hand already, Jackie?" he demands, grabbing it before she has a chance to respond.

.

He pulls her close and settles his other hand on the small of her back. "How can I resist your sweet-talk?"

.

_**Ah when she comes walking over  
Now I've been waitin' to show her  
Crimson and clover over and over**_

.

Observing the curious turn of events, Donna walks slowly toward the bar unnoticed, trying not to disturb her friends' reunion. She's not sure what brought Hyde to his senses, but she's hoping he manages to keep his head out of his own ass long enough to get her back.

.  
Hyde catches sight of Donna and she presses her index finger to her lips as she slips past them. He winks and then returns his attention to the woman in his arms.

.

* * *

.

Eric spots her from the bar area and pinches himself to make sure it's real. His heart starts pounding out of his chest as loud as their high school brass band at halftime. His mouth runs dry at the thought of speaking to her, so he does a shot of liquid courage set in front of him at the bar by Angie, who always seems to be one step ahead of everybody.

.

Jesus she looks good. His emerald eyes gravitate toward her chocolate-colored, silk camisole which catches the light when her considerable breasts undulate as she walks. The closer she is, the faster his thoughts come, immediately scattering like marbles that roll out of reach and disappear under the furniture.  
.

_**Yeah, my, my such a sweet thing  
I wanna do everything  
What a beautiful feeling  
Crimson and clover over and over**_

.  
Once back on the carpet, Donna taps an elegant finger on her chin, trying to decide what she wants to drink. As she closes the last few yards of distance to the bar, her attention is inexplicably pulled toward a pale silhouette standing at the end of the bar facing her. Her forehead knits as her brain registers the man quickly coming into focus in front of her.

.

Her eyes widen with surprise as they make contact with his gaze. She opens her mouth to say something but nothing comes out.

.

Now on the verge of having a full-blown panic attack, Eric takes a step forward to try to bridge the gap between them. Donna instinctively takes a step backwards and shakes her head 'no', paralyzed by shock.

.

With eyes full of longing and regret, he rushes to her, pulling her into his arms and pressing his lips to hers. He kisses her with everything he has left in him, knowing it could be the last time and wanting her to know how sorry he is and how much she means to him, if it's at all possible to explain all of that with the simple action of rubbing one's lips against another's.

.

_**Crimson and clover over and over  
Crimson and clover over and over  
Crimson and clover over and over  
Crimson and clover over and over**_

.

At first she stiffens from the assault and braces herself to bear the weight of his need. Quickly though, her body responds, joining his in its anguish and desire for release from the past months of misery. Her hands stretch over his taut back, more developed than the last time she felt it beneath her fingers, as his tangle themselves in her fiery main, grappling desperately to hold on to what he loves most.

.

At first.

.

As she slowly regains her senses, Donna forcefully pushes her ex-lover off of her, knocking him roughly into the wooden bar, sending his straw hat tumbling to the floor. Still smarting from their contact, he barely feels the impact.

.

She holds her shaky palm up as one would do to stave off a rabid dog, and regains the power of speech. Sort of. "What...the fuck?" She pants, her eyes sparking like flint in his presence.

.

"Donna, I came here for you" he proclaims, his hands gesturing wildly. "I know I fucked up and I jumped to conclusions without talking to you...and I..." his voice catches, "...and I abandoned you" his hands grab his head with the realization that he's basically just handed her a list of reasons to ditch him for good.

.

He places on hand on his heart and reaches the other out in her direction. "Oh God, Donna. I don't know what to say to make it better. I love you, and not just the way people say they do when they find somebody they want to spend their life with, I _love_ you in the way that people write poems about and start wars over. I've loved you for as long as I can remember, and maybe I had trouble finding myself and didn't know what I wanted out of life, but I always wanted you. That _never_ changed." he tells her, out of breath and dizzy from his impromptu soliloquy. "I've wanted you for as long as I can remember wanting anything, and I still do."

.

With her bottom lip quivering, Donna lowers her hand but keeps her distance. His words have touched her, but he's always been good with apologies and knowing exactly the right things to say to assuage her anger. This time is no different in that way, but it's different in all others.  
.

* * *

.

Startled by the activity at the bar, Fez turns to see what's happening. The sight of a bedraggled Eric Forman pouring his heart out to a shell-shocked Big Red has him riveted.

.

Equally riveting however, is the sexy distraction from earlier on in the evening. Fez's eyes drift from the spectacle happening at the corner of the bar to several feet left of there, where his dream woman anxiously follows the melodrama while nibbling the edge of her thumb.

.

God she looks familiar, but he still can't place her. He looks around the bar to catch Jackie's reaction to the reappearance of Point Place's own Robinson Crusoe and gets another jolt to the system as he notices her dancing partner has changed from Mr. Tall, Dark & Handsome, to Mr. Ticked-off, Disaffected & Huffy.

.

Tonight has turned out to be way more interesting that he had anticipated. Who needs Broadway with friends like these.

.

"What are you looking at?" Alex snaps, pouting her lips.

.

Fez snaps out of his reverie. "What? Me? Nothing." he assures her feebly, guilt radiating off of him like fumes off a bottle of turned wine. Fez closes his eyes and waits for the bitter aftertaste to hit.

.

"It's that girl. The one in the blue dress. She's over there and you're staring at her again" she cries, insecurity erupting throughout her body like heartburn. "Is that what you like?" she asks timidly, afraid of the answer she'll receive.

.

Fez looks down guiltily. "I cannot lie to you. I was looking at her."

.

"You're a pig Fez, you know that? I've put up with a lot of crap, sacrificed a lot just to be with you, and you repay me by checking out some other chick while we're on a date?" she yells in his face, her body slightly bouncing with anger.

.

"I'm sorry Alex. You know I like you. I don't even know her." he pleads, reaching out to grab her hand, which she yanks away hostilely.

.

"Is it because I'm not entirely...is it because I don't look like she does when my clothes are off? Because I can't help it, okay? Nobody wants to look like her more than I do" she weeps.

.

"Alex, you're a beautiful woman. You know I think that" he assures her.

.

She wipes her tears and gives him a crooked smile. "I may be beautiful but I'm no woman, no matter how much you want me to be" she says sadly. "You're not completely okay with this." she gestures to the space in-between them.

.

Fez runs his hands through his hair. "I want to be. I really wish I could be."

.

She steadies her breathing and dries her remaining tears. "I will choose to take it as a compliment that you tried to change for me, that even though you weren't comfortable, and that I'm not what you're normally 'into' you were willing to try because you like me so much."

.

He hold her hand. "That's exactly right. I hate that I make you feel like you're not good enough. You are and you deserve somebody who makes you feel beautiful. I'm so sorry Alex." he throws his arms around her and she holds him tightly.

.

She pulls back and plants a gentle kiss on his cheek. "Look at it this way Fez, now you _know_." she nods and squeezes his hand before walking away.

.

'She's right. Now I know' Fez thinks to himself as his eyes fall upon the woman in blue once more.

.

* * *

.

Jackie and Hyde are still sharing a dance, both awkward and comfortable at the same time. Holding her hand, with her body pressed lightly against his own, is like a dream for Hyde. In fact, he's had this exact dream many times in the period she's been gone. Sometimes she falls into his arms and melts like a piece of milk chocolate under the warmth of his love, and at other times she's as cold as an ice queen, impenetrable in her anger.

.

She's never like this though. Not once. And it's as unsettling as hell.

.

Taking a deep breath, he dives in. "I, uh, wanted to apologize to you for the...erm..." he can't seem to get the words out. How do you apologize for dehumanizing somebody you love in the most intimate way possible?

.

"The humiliating revenge-fuck?" she offers, completing his sentence.

.

"Yeah...that." he confirms, feeling like a bigger schmuck hearing her phrase it aloud.

.

She reaches forward and gingerly slides his sunglasses half-way down the bridge of his nose to look in his eyes for proof of his contrition. She is met by a pair of crystal pools, open and deep at the same time – so heavy with emotion the sight of them overwhelms her and puts a catch in her breath.

.

Satisfied with his sincerity, she slides the glasses back into place. "Okay. You're forgiven."

.

His face creases, unable to fathom her forgiveness at such a cheap price.

.

"Come on now, you're thinking so hard you're going to get a cramp" she teases to lighten the mood.

.

"This isn't a set-up right? Kelso's not waiting behind that pillar waiting to scream 'BURN' at me?" he babbles nervously.

.

"I know it's hard for you to understand Steven, but _some_ people don't feel the need to punish their friends for every slight or mistake they make. _Some_ people-" she points to herself "-are secure enough to just forgive and move on without making their friends suffer endlessly" she explains benevolently.

.

"But you like to make people suffer, Jackie" he points out, hoping for a gotcha moment.

.

"I think that having to be you is suffering enough" she smiles through her cutting words. "How can I possibly punish you worse than that?"

.

"How very Zen of you" he snorts. Still in disbelief, he whips off his glasses and scratches his head. "So, um, you're not gonna freeze me out of the group or anything?" he wonders cautiously, thinking it has to be too good to be true.

.

"No" she responds thoughtfully looking at her hands. "There's no point really. It's not like you're going away anytime soon. Our friends are kind of my only family—and unfortunately yours too—so I suppose that means we're stuck with each other" she shrugs. "May as well make it as painless as possible to be in the same room, right?"

.

His defenses drop as he gets a rare peek at her vulnerability. As different as they are, they're peas in a pod, really. Both of them, thrown away like last week's trash by the people who were supposed to care about them most.

.

The worst part? He's guilty of leaving her on the curb, too. She may have left first, but he pushed her away so hard he may as well have filled her gas tank for her – and at the possibility that he might actually still want her, she turned right back around and immediately came home.

But not him. Even when he realized that what he'd done was unfounded he just kept on trucking, content to watch her form get smaller and smaller in his rear view mirror until she was nothing but a speck on the horizon. It was easier to sideline her than to risk the pain of her possibly abandoning him. Little did he realize he was inflicting his one great fear onto her. He cannibalized her to protect himself from The Bogeyman.

.

"At least you stayed in the country when you abandoned me. Eric took it on an international tour which, though admittedly more glamorous, it's also infinitely more insulting, don't you think?" Jackie surmises, using humor to diffuse the tension - her tried and true coping mechanism.

.

Hyde laughs at her twisted reasoning and feels his heartstrings tug. She may be at her hottest when she's pissed off, but she's at her most adorable whenever she spouts her own unique brand of Jackie-logic. He can't help but betray his amusement with a hint of a smile.

.

Her eyes narrow. "Are you laughing at me right now? I already kicked one of you dumbasses in the shins tonight. Don't think I won't do it again" she warns.

.

"Come on Jackie, I know what you're capable of, I have the scars to prove it." he claims in response to her skepticism. "I already have a limp, do I look like an idiot to you?" he retorts.

.

Her eyebrows raise to indicate 'yes' and she purses her lips to keep from saying something more. If there's one thing she's learned from her ex over the years is that silence puts you in the power position. Always.

.

"Maybe I walked into that one" Hyde sighs.

.

Michael approaches the pair and hands Jackie a drink, which she eagerly accepts. "Well, as lovely as this reunion has been for me Steven, I think I'm going to get back to my date now" she informs him while wrapping her arm firmly around the actor's waist. "Good luck with your concert series" she smiles and turns to leave.

.

"Wait!" he calls out, not knowing exactly what he plans to say. "Uh...don't be a stranger, okay? We miss you back home." he says softly, leaving himself to wonder if the spirit of Eric Forman forcefully took over his body just then.

.

"Ditto" she nods before turning around and wandering into the darkness.

.

Hyde leans against a nearby pillar as he ponders what kind of bullshit word 'ditto' is.

.

* * *

.

The childhood sweethearts at the bar are still engaged in a stalemate.

.

"Say something, Donna. Please." Eric begs as he reaches out to grab one of her hands again.

.

She retracts her hands like they've been burned and pinches the skin in-between her eyes. "I'm so...I just really don't know what to say to you right now."

.

"Just say the first thing that comes to you" he prods, figuring that being yelled at has to be better than this.

.

"The first thing that comes to my mind...hmmm...okay. How about 'where the hell were you for the last two fucking months?'" she shouts, losing her cool rapidly.

.

"I – I—I was...in Jamaica" he stammers.

.

The redhead turns like she's about to say something to him then changes course. "I just can't...I don't think I can do this right now with you, Eric. Not here."

.

"Come on, Donna. Please talk to me!" he begs, approaching her once again.

.

"No. Not here. Not now." she asserts. Still unable to meet his eyes, she turns away from him.

.

He stands as close to her as possible, his hot breath tickling her bare shoulder. "Come on baby, I love you. Please talk to me." he whispers.

.

He diffidently runs his hand gently down the side of one arm, luxuriating in the feeling of her ivory skin beneath his fingertips. He's dreamed of touching this skin every night for weeks, and he can't believe it's really happening, that she's really here.

.

Donna angles her head and finally brings her eyes—as cold and dark as jade—upward to look into his. "I said no" she hisses before turning around to slap him hard across the face. "I want you to leave me the fuck alone, Eric. You should be an expert at it by now" she snaps before running across the dance floor into the darkness.

.

Jackie watches Donna flash by and turns to run after her, with Michael close behind her.

.

Eric's face crumples as he falls back onto a bar stool.

.

Hyde walks over and places a stable hand on his best friend's shoulder. "That was pretty fucking brutal" he exhales. "You okay, man?" he asks as he signals to the barman to set up another round.

.

Angie slides over to the chair next to Eric's and puts an arm around his waist. "I'm so sorry, hun. I think you just caught her off guard. I'm sure once she has a chance to calm down she'll - -"

.

He shakes his head. "She won't."

.

Fez makes his way over to his friends, face full of empathy. "Hey."

.

Hyde smiles and embraces his old friend. "Man, you have no idea how good it is to see you." he tells him honestly, Forman's earnestness still coursing through his veins like a sickness.

.

"No, really I do" he smiles, shoving his hands in his pockets.

.

"Fez?" Eric croaks from over Angie's shoulder. "I can't believe almost everybody I know just watched me get my ass handed to me in a New York Nightclub. Man, I'm so glad Kelso's not here to rub it in my face."

.

"Oh Eric, I will rub it in your face if you want me to" he offers, prompting a WTF reaction from Hyde, who has taken it as a double entendre.

.

"That what she said" Angie pipes in awkwardly, causing her brother to shake his head in disgust.

.

Fez laughs heartily at Angie's lame, inappropriately-timed joke.

.

"I missed having you guys around" Eric says, getting weepy as he stands to hug Fez. "I miss Donna" he sobs. "And now she'll never take me back."

.

Hyde winces. "Man, grow a pair. She's not going to take you back if you're missing your balls."

.

Fez makes a contrite face. "Eric, Hyde is correct. Donna will not want you without your balls. Right now you are starting to sound like a woman, and this is coming from the sensitive guy" he says, pointing to himself.

.

"Why don't we get him back to the hotel?" Angie suggests.

.

"Do we have a stocked bar in our hotel room, Angie?" the Zenmaster questions.

.

"Um...no" she answers hesitantly.

.

"Yeah, then no. What we're gonna do, is stay right here and get Forman so drunk he can't remember her name. That's what real men do when they get dumped." he declares.

.

Fez tips his head from side to side. "Or...alternatively, you could follow Hyde's lead and get so drunk you marry a stripper and then refuse to divorce her, effectively ending the best best thing that ever happened to you."

.

"Ouch" Angie giggles, causing butterflies to take flight in the foreigner's stomach.

.

"Shut the fuck up, Fez" Hyde huffs angrily. "He's going to stay here and drink until he passes out. It's the safest thing he can do right now." He leads him to the other side of the bar where the bartender is filling orders.

.

"Who's the hot chick? Is she yours?" Fez posits to Hyde.

.

He looks like he just bit into something nasty and glares at his friend. "Yeah, she's mine. She's my fucking sister, you pervert. Did somebody hit you in the head or something?"

.

On the other side of the bar, Angie leans back and whispers in Eric's ear. "Who's the Erik Estrada clone over there?" she motions to Fez with her chin.

.

Eric looks at her like she's crazy and whispers back. "You met him, like 100 times. That's Fez."

.

Her eyes widen with realization. "Ohhh. I thought he was deported." she says under her breath.

.

* * *

.

Back at Jackie and Donna's apartment, the girls are huddled together on Donna's bed.

.

"Try not to think about it tonight. Losing a whole night of sleep over that dweeb isn't going to make things better. You still won't have a solution to your problem, but you will have hideous, dark eye bags, and somebody with your complexion can't camouflage something like that very successfully." the tiny brunette advises her roommate. "You're already going to have to deal with puffiness from crying and I'd like to still have the option of taking you out in public tomorrow." Jackie pouts her lips sympathetically.

.

The tall woman looks down at her friend and smiles. "Don't ever change, Jackie. I like that there are somethings in life I can still count on." she says lighting a match off of the bottom of Jackie's boot.

.

"Hey!" Jackie crinkles up her face in anger. "These are suede! You're lucky you're having such a shit night." she says, producing a joint from her bra strap and lighting it off of Donna's match. "Here you go, you lumberjack. Smoke up and and chill out." she orders, placing the slender cigarette between Donna's swollen red lips. "If you get really sad you can wake me" she offers as she stands to open the door.

.

"Hey!" Donna calls out just as her friend is about to close the door. "Thanks for being such a good friend to me, midget. I really do appreciate it" she smiles weakly.

.

"You'd do the same for me, right?" she smiles knowingly as she closes the door.

.

* * *

.

Michael is splayed out on the couch, finishing a joint. He offers it to Jackie, who bounds over to the couch excitedly and hops up to straddle his lap.

.

He takes a long drag from the joint and then Jackie presses her plump lips against his and shotguns his breath. She holds it in her lungs for a moment and then exhales.

.

Her boyfriend looks at her with admiration as his hands slide up her legs on either side, making their way under her dress. "Anybody ever tell you how sexy you are?".

.

Jackie laughs and pulls a hit off of the joint. "Everybody tells me that Michael. It's kind of my thing."

.

"Well they're right. All of them." he smiles as his hands grasp the sides of her panties and slowly edge them over her behind.

.

She stands for a moment, allowing him to glide them off completely.

.

"Really?" he looks up at her excitedly with lust in his eyes.

.

"You were really great tonight. So sweet and patient. I think you deserve a reward." she coos as she straddles his lap once again.

.

"What kind of reward did you have in mind?" he asks as he loosens one strap on her dress, dropping it down to expose one of her breasts, which he eagerly takes in his hand. He buries the other hand between her legs, excited by how wet he's been able to make without even touching her.

.

Jackie pretends to think for a moment. "Oh...I don't know. I could bake you some cookies" she suggests.

.

"I'm allergic to cookies" he jokes as he takes her nipple in his mouth.

.

She arches her back and lets out a soft moan of approval.

.

"There's always knitting. I could knit you a sweater to keep you cozy in the winter" she purrs as he loosens the other strap on her dress, causing it to fall to her waist. "I'm not very good at knitting though." she pouts.

.

He licks his lips and smiles up at her. "Any other ideas?" he wonders, egging her on as he gently gives both nipples a little tug.

.

Jackie bucks her hips in response and then narrows her eyes. "As a last resort, I suppose I could let you just, you know, 'prove your love' to me" she whispers with a grin.

.

Michael stubs out the joint in an ashtray and flips her onto her back on the couch, quickly whipping her dress off and leaving her wearing only boots. "I choose option 3" he decides as he spreads her legs and buries his face between the apex of her thighs.

.

"Oh God" she pants, grabbing a hold of his shiny locks. "Michael, you are...very talented" she gasps, crossing her ankles behind his head.

.

He slips his hands under her ass, pulls her further into his mouth and sucks hard, darting his tongue in and out of her wet core.

.

Jackie's breathing becomes erratic and labored as she grinds against his face. He reaches up with one hand and pinches one nipple hard, almost immediately causing her to call out his name as she intensely climaxes. "God Michael!" she screams as she rides out her high.

.

He emerges from her thighs and yanks his jeans off, then hovers over Jackie, eager to slip inside of her.

.

"Wait, Michael...do you, um, have something?" she asks, looking up at him expectantly.

.

His face falls. "Oh, I hate condoms" he grumbles.

.

"I'm not on the Pill" she lies quickly, unwilling to put herself at risk for him.

.

"You mean you've never...done it without?" he asks.

.

"Only with one person, but he was different." she tells him, annoyed to find her mind drifting back to Steven once again. "What about you?" she wonders.

.

"Oh, I usually date girls who are on the Pill" he says.

.

"But I mean, we haven't really known each other that long" she reminds him. "Even though we're exclusive, I don't know where you were before me."

.

He sits up. "You think I have something?" he questions, getting offended.

.

"How do you know _I_ don't have something?" she challenges.

.

He shrugs. "I mean, I guess I don't, but you look clean." he assumes.

.

She sits up and cups his face in her hands. "Get tested and I'll go on the Pill. Deal?" she asks sweetly.

.

"Yeah, okay" he shrugs, disappointed but still willing.

.

"I think Fez keeps some condoms in the bathroom" she offers.

.

He leans over and kisses her on the mouth. "I'll be right back" he tells her, grimacing at the thought of 'suiting up'.

.

As Jackie waits for him to return, she closes her eyes and tries to remember the feeling of Steven's hand on the small of her back rubbing tiny circles when they danced.

.

**A/N – Hope you liked it. Please leave a review and let me know. PRETTY PLEASE!**


	24. Chapter 24

**So, as most of you know, this story was supposed to be a prequel of sorts to Strange Trip and Long Road Back stories, but it because so different that I abandoned that idea. This chapter is probably the point where the fic goes off in it's own direction. Hope you're all still into it.**

**.**

**This chapter is very J/H centric, and the next one will focus mostly on D/E.**

**. **

**CHAPTER 24**

.

"Oh my God, Fez! Don't you know how to knock?" Jackie barks as Fez as she gathers a blanket around her naked form.

.

"This is the front door Jackie and I have a key. If you want privacy, you should try doing it in your own bedroom...but since you're already out here, I will allow it. Proceed." he quickly adds with a wave of the hand, hoping she'll keep her sexual activity public so he can watch.

.

Apprehensively, Eric emerges from behind his foreign friend. "Or don't" he cringes.

.

The tiny spitfire leaps to her feet in anger. "No. No. No. You are not welcome here." she says, shaking her finger in Eric's direction. "He is not welcome here." she tells Fez as she points at her wayward friend.

.

"This is my apartment too, my goddess, and Eric is my friend." he tells her defiantly.

.

She narrows her gaze to a withering stare. "Well then let me remind you that Donna is also your friend, and I just spent the last couple of hours comforting your friend until she fell asleep."

.

"Looks like Donna wasn't the only one you were comforting tonight" a familiar gruff voice carries over from the hallway.

.

Jackie feels her stomach lurch into her throat and she lets out a guttural moan of exasperation. "Really Fez? You brought him too? Who else do you have back there? Stalin?" she huffs and then flops back down onto the couch.

.

Michael, taking in the scene before him, becomes increasingly uncomfortable. "I think...I'm just gonna...um, go. Yeah."

.

Her face falls as she watches him try to dress behind her cashmere throw. "You don't have to go."

.

He looks at the unimpressed faces of the three men at the door and wrinkles his nose. "I'm thinking I do." he says as he buttons his fly. "Night baby. I'll call you tomorrow." he tells her as he strokes her cheek and leans over for a quick goodnight kiss.

.

Hyde averts his eyes until they've finished their adieus.

.

Michael walks passed Fez with an annoyed look and then lightly shoulder checks Jackie's ex on his way to the stairwell.

.

Eric fires off a stern warning look to keep Hyde from pounding the guy's face in. "Not now." he pleads quietly and his buddy begrudgingly complies.

.

"Eric, seriously. She doesn't want to see you." she reminds him.

.

He walks into the apartment purposefully, ignoring her advice and takes a seat next to his friend on the couch. "You still have your boots on" he says, as he looks down and notices her shoes. "Nice."

.

Eric leans over and retrieves a condom wrapper from the floor then hands it to her. "I believe this belongs to you, m'lady" he smirks.

.

"Laugh it up, monkey boy. It's just evidence of my desirability." she tosses her hair.

.

Fez slides himself on the couch in the small space between the two of them. "This is cozy" he smiles, glancing at each of his friends.

.

"Will you get off of me?" she demands in an acid-dipped tone.

.

Affronted, Fez stands up and walks to the kitchen. "Fine. I was just about to get my nightly bag of Skittles from the freezer anyway" he pouts, retreating slowly while hoping to be called back in. "No Skittles for you!" he shouts at her.

.

"You may as well sit down, Steven" Jackie tells him. "Make my humiliation complete." she sighs, leaning back against the sofa, her blanket toga falling slightly open with the motion, catching his eye.

.

He casually lands in an arm chair and props his foot up on his knee. "No need to be embarrassed. It's nothing I haven't seen before, sweetheart" he chimes in with casual contempt as his eyes quickly sweep across the velvety expanse of skin on her shoulders.

.

She ignores her ex and turns to speak to the man sitting next to her. "You have five minutes to convince me to let you talk to her" she lets him know before straightening her posture to give him her full attention.

.

He opens his mouth to speak and she promptly interrupts before one word has a chance to leave his mouth.

.

"Stop! I can't take you seriously while you're wearing that hat" she grimaces. "If the landlord knew you were wearing it in here he'd probably evict us for driving down his property value." she complains.

.

"Ah burn." Fez points out from the kitchen entrance, happy he made it back in time to watch Jackie eviscerate the poor guy.

.

Eric tosses his hat on the coffee table and pulls a joint from his wallet. "I _was_ saving this for later, but it's obvious that now might be a better time" he mumbles, pulling out his lighter to ignite it.

.

Jackie places one hand on his knee and tilts her head up to look in his eyes. "Can you please just tell me what you were thinking when you left?"

.

The first toke of hot smoking coiling around his lungs makes him cough. "Uh...I think it's pretty obvious that I wasn't" he wheezes.

.

Her other hand joins his knees and she inches her body nearer to his, hoping the physical closeness will ease his nerves and make him more likely to be honest. She may be as angry as a wrecked anthill right now, but it still doesn't take away from her growing concern for his emotional state.

.

Hyde takes one look at their intimate connection and feels the blood drain from his face, his body growing numb all over.

.

His brow furrows as he pulls his glasses down to make sure he's not just imagining things. He knows the pair spent a few days together down in Mexico, but at the time he just couldn't let his mind entertain the possibility that they shared more with each other than friendship and a bottle of tequila.

.

The tender way she's looking at him now though, coupled with the familiar manner in which she's touching his legs, suggests otherwise.

.

Hyde can feel himself getting sicker the more he lets his mind dwell, so he quickly leans forward and plucks the joint from Eric's hand. If his body's going to be numb, he may as well have his brain join the party.

.

"You can't just come at her, guns blazing" the pixie advises. "That's not how you get a woman to listen to you."

.

Hyde's ears perk up at Jackie's words. If he wants to know how to win her back, he may as well take notes and use them against her, since she's practically drawing Forman a map.

.

"What do you suggest? Flowers? Jewelry? I'll do anything" he swears desperately.

.

She rubs one warm hand gently over his kneecap to steady him. "You really hurt her, you can't skirt around it. You need to figure out why you left before you apologize for leaving. Otherwise, how is she going to know it won't happen again?"

.

"I thought she was going to New York without me." he says simply.

.

Jackie shakes her head. "That's not why you left. A normal person would have just stuck around and had an argument about it. You didn't even give her the courtesy of being twitched at by you."

.

Hyde feels his jaw tighten as he absorbs her words. How can she say this when she did the exact same thing to him at Christmas? She was just going to blindside him and bolt without a word, not even giving him the opportunity to beg her to stay. What a hypocrite.

.

Then again, what he did to her a few years back, running off to Las Vegas without giving her so much as a minute of his time was even worse. Fuck. He realizes at this moment what she meant when she kept telling him to shut up about their big blow-out on New Year's Eve. She wasn't specifically pissed off about his behavior that night, she was pissed off about every night from the day she announced she might leave for Chicago until the moment Forman scooped her up and put her into the passenger's seat of his Vista Cruiser.

.

It's like he served her a birthday cake made out of dogshit and then apologized for the icing being too sweet. She's not mad about the icing.

.

He's never once bothered to examine his actions or his motivation for inflicting anything he did on her. He blindly tore through her life like an F5 tornado, uprooting her and everything she held dear in the process, never stopping to consider the WHY of it all.

.

Time for him to dig deep and figure out why he always assumed she was cheating and why he routinely tried to punish her bitterly for crimes she didn't commit. Why he let her walk out the door knowing full well he would suffocate without her in his life. Why he insisted on staying married to a stripper when the woman he truly loves humbly offered herself up to him again. Why he mocked her and rubbed her nose in his rejection as payment for her efforts.

.

After all, how can he truly apologize when he doesn't even know what he's apologizing to her for? How can he prevent it from happening again? For as much as he wants—no—_needs_ her in his life, he won't risk hurting her again. He'd do anything to protect her from suffering, even if he's the one she needs protection from.

.

"Do you want to have this conversation in private?" Jackie asks, looking around at the other two men in the room.

.

Eric shrugs. "They can stay. I can use all the help I can get." he takes the joint back from Hyde and breathes the smoke in deeply.

.

"Oh Eric, you are so screwed even we cannot help you" Fez assesses.

.

She shoots her roommate a look, effectively shutting him up. "Eric, answer me this—when you're lying in your bed at night all alone in the dark, and you can't sleep...what's the one thing that nagging voice in the back of your head always taunts you with?"

.

"Um, it tells me to remember to 'wear clean underwear'?" he guesses.

.

"How about just start with 'wear underwear', Mr. Nude?" Hyde cracks.

.

"Eric, figure out what you're afraid of - besides Wookies - and you'll know why you keep screwing things up" she says. "It'll probably take you a while, since you're scared of, like, almost everything." Jackie frowns.

.

The man in glasses smiles with admiration at his ex's ability to both comfort and burn a guy simultaneously.

.

Eric's face registers a myriad of emotions. "You really like to toy with Pandora's box, don't you my little Padawan?" he points to her and laughs nervously.

.

"I would like to toy with Pandora's box" Fez wiggles his eyebrows suggestively.

.

"Gross" Jackie wrinkles her nose in disgust. "Okay, look Eric. I'll even go first to make it easy for you." She brings one of her hands to her chest and adopts a serious mien. "I, Jackie Burkhart, am afraid of white foods, being cheated on by my boyfriends, synthetic fibers, and...clowns" she shivers. "And you-?" she gestures cheerfully toward him.

.

His eyes pop as he realizes she actually expects him to do this out loud and in front of everybody. "...uh..."

.

She shrugs. "I'll just show you the door."

.

"No—wait! I_..._am afraid of storm troopers, Sauramon, and turning into my father...and also of _not _turning into my father." As soon as he realizes what's escaped his lips, he brings his fingers to his temples and shuts his eyes. "Wow. Where the hell did that come from?" his hands mime a bomb going off in his head. "Paging Dr. Freud!"

.

"Eric, you have always been afraid of storm troopers." Fez throws a few Skittles in his mouth. He claps his hands wildly. "This is fun, I will go next" he announces. "I, Fez, am afraid of pleated khaki's, hairspray that does not work, never finding somebody who really loves me, and a world without Halloween."

.

"Okay. Good Fez." Jackie smiles.

.

All three friends then turn their heads slowly to an unsuspecting Hyde.

.

He looks up and notices them all staring at him. "What?"

.

The group beams expectantly at him. "Uh...no." he decides and then crosses his arms over his chest protectively.

.

"That's not fair" carps Fez.

.

"Life's not fair, man." he grins smugly, shrugging his shoulders.

.

"Steven, you're not chicken are you?" his ex taunts in a low voice before pivoting to look at Eric. "It's just so emasculating to wimp out on doing stuff that even Fez can do, no?" she muses. Both boys nod in agreement.

.

"Jackie makes a very good point there, Hyde." Eric nods, leaning two horizontal fingers over his mouth to keep the laughter inside. He would give his last dollar to hear his friend wax thoughtfully on his fears and shortcomings.

.

"Fuck off, Forman" he grumbles, nonplussed.

.

"You heard my goddess. Even I can do it, Hyde" Fez gleefully throws himself on top of the pileup.

.

"Yeah, that's because you're immune to shame." he retorts.

.

An evil smile curls the edges of Jackie's lips causing the hair to stand at attention on the back of Hyde's neck. "It's okay Steven. I wouldn't want you to do anything you don't feel man enough to do. I know how sensitive your feelings can be."

.

He stares her down for a minute then cracks and scowls ruefully as he curses to himself silently. "Fine." he spits out gruffly.

.

Jackie claps and cheers, very pleased over her mind-fuck victory. "Yay! You can do it!" she shouts in cheer-like fashion, complete with hand movements.

.

He scoots to the edge of the seat and then leans forward until he's only a foot from her face. "Since you insist. My big fears are...a world-wide marijuana scourge, women who don't ever shut the hell up, losing stuff I like, government mind control through nanotechnology...oh, and dolls. Dolls probably frighten me the most" he discloses in a mocking tone, never breaking their eye contact.

.

She scoots forward and her bare knees brush against his – the movement causing the blanket toga to bunch at her hips, revealing slightly too much of her shapely, olive-toned legs. "I'll bet you think that was a really clever answer Puddin' Pop, don't you?" she coos. "The jokes on you, though. Sarcastic as you may be, you've still managed to expose what makes you tick."

.

Puddin' Pop?! Hyde feels his chest tighten with possibility as he takes in her verbal slip and goes on the offensive to distract her from the blood in the water. "Looks like _you're_ the one who's exposed, Jackie" he points to her naked thighs and laughs. She lets out a puff of exasperation and rearranges her toga to cover her legs. "Okay, let's hear it. Tell me what deep dark secrets I've just 'revealed' to you" he eggs her on. "You know you want to."

.

"Well" she clears her throat. "You're afraid of running out of marijuana, probably the only thing that calms those nasty voices in your head who tell you you;re not good enough" she starts. "You're scared of women who don't shut the hell up? Duh! That's me." she chuckles. "Losing stuff? My psychology 101 textbook would suggest it means you don't want to be abandoned. I'm not even going to touch that whole government conspiracy thing. And dolls? Come on. Clearly me again. Feels good to know you're just as obsessed with me as I am" she sings as she pokes him in the tummy.

.

"So to sum up- Steven is insecure, scared of being abandoned and petrified of Miss Jacqueline Burkhart." she squeals, pleased to be dissecting his guts in front of him while he helplessly watches on.

.

Hyde looks at her slack-jawed, unable to form a response to her analysis. He really did think he was just feeding her dumb answers, but they revealed the truth nonetheless. Funny how the act of hiding can expose more than just laying low.

.

Luckily for Hyde, the other two men in the room are speechless as well...for a while at least.

.

"Jackie" Eric says enthusiastically. "That was..._awesome!"_ he practically trills the last word as his hands stretch toward the heavens.

.

"I know" she chirps and flips her hair. "Now if you'll excuse me, being this awesome has left me feeling a little parched." she stands up and walks into the kitchen.

.

Hyde remains shell-shocked for a moment, before pushing himself off of the chair and following her into the other room.

.

Fez pulls a frightened look at Eric.

.

* * *

.

When Hyde enters the kitchen, he finds Jackie leaning against the open refrigerator trying to decide what she wants from inside. He approaches the fridge and places his arm on the other side, joining her in her beverage search.

.

The small beauty picks up her head to look at him and smirks. "This feels familiar" she lilts, referring to the hours they used to make out in front of the Formans' open fridge during their 'Summer of Love.'

.

He sighs knowingly and reaches in to grab a beer, then walks to the kitchen counter to use the edge as a can opener, slamming his hand down hard on the top of the lid.

.

She grabs herself a beer then follows him to the counter area, handing over her bottle for him to open. "I, um...you know I was just playing around in there, don't you?"

.

He gives her a studied look of doubt before slamming the heel of his hand down on her beer bottle top. "It's fine" he says dismissively as he hands her the open bottle.

.

"Thanks." Something about this exchange is unsettling to her. His response is uncharacteristically calm. "You're not upset? I kind of figured you'd be mad at me and say something mean." she takes a few steps away from him to give him a wide berth, should he explode.

.

He steps closer to her, backing her up against the side of the fridge. "Did you want me to be mad?"

.

She looks down, his close proximity making the air thick and difficult to breathe. "Maybe a little" she admits. "I guess I'm still a little angry about...you know." she says, both of them suddenly realizing themselves to be in a similar position and location as the scene of their last blowup.

.

"Can you keep a secret?" he asks, not wanting their rendezvous to end.

.

She nods slowly and inhales deeply, still feeling lightheaded from the lack of oxygen whenever he is close.

.

He reaches out and slowly tucks an errant lock of hair behind her left ear, causing her to fight her instinct to lean into his touch. "You were right."

.

Her lips curl into a cautious smile. "You're going to have to be more specific, since I am always right."

.

He laughs and shakes his head. "Out there" he points. "You know, what you said about me."

.

Her eyes widen before her face falls into disarray. "You're afraid of me?"

.

Using a thumb, he smooths out the furrow in her brow. "Thought you always said frowning gave you wrinkles."

.

"Don't change the subject. Why are you afraid of me, Steven?" she wonders, slightly distracted by the loud, escalating thumping of her heartbeat in her ear.

.

His thumb glides from her forehead to the underside of her jaw. "Maybe because you never let me get away with anything."

.

She scoffs. "I let you get away with everything!"

.

"No, I mean you call me on my bullshit and make me face things I'd rather sweep under the rug" he explains. "Like meeting my dad and 'living up to my potential' with a job and crap like that."

.

"Those are all things you would have done eventually on your own without me." she asserts, her hands nervously gripping the knot holding up her blanket.

.

Hyde leans in closer and whispers in her ear. "See? There you go believing in me again." His hot breath on her neck makes her dizzy.

.

Her expression is a mixture of pain and confusion. "What are you doing, Steven?" she asks warily.

.

He presses his forehead to hers and her eyes shut tightly. "I'm so sorry, baby. About everything."

.

She gasps. "It's cool" she breathes, trying hard to sound casual, hoping to regain control of the room. A small tears rolls out from the corner of her eye and she blinks it away.

.

His left hand slides into her hair, holding her head in place, forehead still pressed up against hers. "It's most definitely not cool." he insists. "But there really isn't a good way to apologize for keeping my feelings about you a secret and pushing you away. The crazy thing is, you all I ever wanted and I did everything I could do to get you to leave."

.

"You wanted me?" she peeps softly. She's pretty sure she's going to pass out at this point. There have been many similar fantasies over the years, ones where he begs for forgiveness and professes his love to her-then they fall into each other's arms and make love until the sun comes up. In a million years, she didn't expect even one part of that scenario to actually happen. As optimistic as she, Steven always had a way of throwing a wet blanket on those expectations, so she quickly learned to stop hoping.

.

He nods subtly, still pressed against her.

.

"I-I didn't know." she stammers, head swimming and out of breath.

.

"You don't have to say anything" he whispers, his lips brushing the back of her ear. "Probably better if you don't, actually. It's just, you told Forman he should try to figure out what he's most afraid of, so he can stop himself from hurting Donna again. I don't want to hurt you anymore either."

.

"Seriously?" she asks apprehensively.

.

"I just spent ten minutes in the other room sharing my feelings with Fez and Forman like Barbra Walters. That's not enough to show you I mean business?" he posits.

.

She laughs, then lifts her hands to his head and pushes him slightly away from her so she can look into his eyes. Jackie slides Hyde's glasses halfway down his nose and takes in his baby blues.

.

He swallows thickly and closes his eyes. This isn't something he can say with her amber headlights penetrating him. "In the back of my mind, I guess I always thought you would leave me, you know...like_ she_ did. I figured if I didn't let myself care about you or if I pushed you away and made you leave me early enough..." His feels something press up against him and his eyes flutter open, revealing Jackie's lips on the corner of his mouth.

.

She pulls back and smiles euphorically. "I thought you didn't think I was good enough for you, and that's why you could never say you loved me."

.

Shocked, he rubs a hand roughly over his face. "What made you think I didn't think you were good enough?"

.

"You never said you loved me". Her eyes bashfully dart out of reach. "I mean, you did tell people once that I sicken you. You always made me feel like the things I liked or cared about were shallow, you mocked me for wanting to grow up and implied that I was childish or desperate for wanting a future with you. That last one is probably a little true, though." she admits.

.

Hyde chokes back his emotion and exhales a cleansing breath. "None of that stuff is true Jackie, especially the last one."

.

"Oh" she says, processing his confession.

.

"You're, like, the most amazing person I've ever known. I mean, you nursed your asshole ex-boyfriend back to health in your home when anyone else would've left me to rot." he explicates. "Why do you think I was so pissed off when I found out you were leaving? I thought I was getting another chance and then you pulled the rug out from under me." he confides regretfully.

.

"You—you wanted another chance?" she asks, mystified in her inability to read him after so many years.

.

"I always want another chance when it comes to you. I actually toyed around with the idea of kidnapping you" he jokes.

.

Confusion threatens to overwhelm her. "Wow. I figured if you really wanted to be with me you would have said something earlier. I just assumed...I mean, you had enough opportunities to say something." she says, her mood slightly darkening.

.

"I did?" he questions, gobsmacked. "Yeah, I probably did, but I thought Chicago was just about sex for you."

.

"Do I look like somebody who has indiscriminate sex with people I don't care about?" she challenges.

.

Hyde looks down at the blanket wrapped around her naked body. "You did tonight, didn't you?"

.

Jackie slides down the fridge to sit on the floor. He takes a seat next to her, his back also resting against the fridge. "I've never done that before." she says quietly.

.

"I know" he nods. "Guess I'm rubbing off on you finally."

.

She flicks his earlobe. "I'm lonely in New York." she shrugs. "Also, I didn't want my last sexual encounter to be...what it was."

.

He brings his knees up, rests his crossed arms on top and leans his head against them. "Right after I...you know, when you turned around, the way you looked at me...man, I felt like a monster."

.

"I know" she tells him. "You were mad and I knew it was only a matter of time before you said or did something cruel, I just never thought you'd punish me in that way." she looks away, still slightly ashamed.

.

His clear blue eyes peek up from his arms to look at her. "If I told you I'd never be mean to you again, would you believe me?"

.

She laughs for a breath. "I believe that you'd try, but no, I don't think you'd be able to stop yourself. Time for you to just admit I'm just too irresistible a target" she purses her lips and bats her eye lashes in his direction.

.

He turns to her and gently cups her face to force her eye contact. "Yeah, you're pretty irresistible" he grins, meaning it an entirely different way. "but I'm gonna prove you wrong."

.

Jackie's face gets hot with the intensity of Hyde's stare and the sensation of his skin touching hers so intimately. She worries her lip for a moment, then smiles. "This might be the first time in my life I've ever wanted to be wrong."

.

Hyde looks at her face, as innocent and beautiful as cupid's, and feels old desires stir him from within. He's desperate to have her again, to touch her all over, but this isn't the right time. Unable to stop himself completely though, he bargains with his conscience to allow himself just one small kiss.

.

Their unique gravitational pull inches them closer together and just as their lips are about to touch, Eric walks into the kitchen, causing a disruption that forces them to pull back from one another in haste.

.

He looks down and raises a suspicious eyebrow. "Drop another condom wrapper, Jackie?"

.

"Why don't you demonstrate your only talent and run off?" she suggests, waving him out the door with her hand.

.

The Zenmaster helps his ex to her feet.

.

"I'd tell you to demonstrate yours, but I'm pretty sure that's what we caught you doing on your couch when we first walked in" Eric cracks.

.

Hyde leans forward and frogs his friend in the arm very hard.

.

"Ow! Damn, Hyde. That's like, the fifth time tonight" he grumbles. "Can you stop it?"

.

"I don't know, can you stop being a dickwad?" he counters.

.

Jackie's eyes flash with admiration at his defense of her honor.

.

Eric runs a hand through his shaggy hair and lowers his eyes. "Look, I just came in here to say to you guys that I know Donna's not the only one I'm in deep shit with. I have a lot of groveling to do."

.

"Well, I'm a dude, so...no thanks." he says, pushing his glasses further up on to his nose.

.

"You can grovel at my feet any time, dorkus" Jackie offers.

.

"Easy there, Tinkerbell" Hyde warns teasingly.

.

Just as the laughing reaches a crescendo, a red hairball wrapped in a plaid flannel robe emerges from behind the kitchen door.

.

Time seems to stop as Donna reaches into the fridge and pulls out a small container of orange juice. She grabs a glass from the cabinet and then turns to head out. Just as she's about to pass fully through the door she halts for a moment, causing all those around her to hold their breath.

.

"Tomorrow" she mumbles as she leans her head against the door jam. "You can talk to me tomorrow." she says firmly before leaving the room.

.

Eric silently cheers and pulls a crooked arm up and down to signify his triumph.

.

"I'd rest that hand if I were you, Eric Forman, because if Donna doesn't take you back, you're going to need it" Jackie smirks as she follows Donna out of the door.

.

* * *

.

Jackie emerges from her bathroom wearing a tank top and pair of sleep shorts, her hair still slightly damp from the shower. She crosses her darkened room, pulls the covers aside and slides into her bed, suddenly noticing a body there already under the covers. She screams loudly.

.

"Shh, relax Jackie, it's me" Hyde tells her.

.

"Steven, what the hell are you doing in my bed?" she wonders angrily.

.

"Fez told us to just sleep over, since it's so late already. Eric got the couch, so I had nowhere else to crash. I figured you wouldn't mind if I slept here." he explains, defending his actions.

.

She gives him a skeptical eye and then relents. "Fine. Whatever. I'm too tired to argue." she sighs, sliding back down into the bed. "No funny business though." she warns.

.

"Like I would try to have sex with a chick who just got finished banging another guy in her living room" he scoffs.

.

She turns on her side to face him. "Okay, first of all, you totally would and probably already have. And second of all, I did not 'just get finished banging some guy', it was hours ago and we didn't have sex. Not exactly anyway." she says defensively.

.

"Right. I often open condoms just for fun" he deadpans.

.

"There are other things people use condoms for besides intercourse, Steven" she replies shyly.

.

He looks at her for a moment and then realizes what she means. "Oh. You used a condom for that? You never did with me."

.

"Yeah? Well, that's because he's not you" she tells him flatly.

.

Hyde is oddly flattered by this and reaches out to take her hand. "I guess I'm glad you're being safe, even if you are fooling around with a Kelso clone who is strangely also named Michael."

.

"Ha. I knew you wouldn't be able to leave that one alone." she chuckles. "It is kind of a coincidence."

.

He wraps an arm protectively around her waist and pulls her back into his chest.

.

"What are you doing?" she questions nervously.

.

"You seem a little tense and I know you always sleep better like this." he lies, knowing full well that it's _he_ who sleeps better in this position.

.

She purses her lips in thought and turns her head. "You don't think this is weird? I mean, we're not even together."

.

"Does it feel weird?" he challenges, positive that it's as right to her as it is to him.

.

She yawns, then settles into his embrace. "I guess not."

.

"Then shut up already and go to sleep already" he teases, burying his face in her freshly washed hair.

.

Jackie smiles and pulls Hyde's other arm around her tightly. "Goodnight Steven."

.

"Goodnight, dollface" he whispers into her ear, causing her to shiver involuntarily. Upon feeling her body shudder against his own, he smiles widely. She still cares. For the first time in months he breathes easily with the knowledge he'll finally be able to sleep through the night again.

.

**A/N – what do you think? I promise you will be getting some smut from both couples very soon! Please leave a comment and let me know if you liked it. Anonymous reviews encouraged too!**


	25. Chapter 25

**The moment you've been waiting for-J/H sMut! **

**PARTS OF THIS CHAPTER ARE RATED M!**

**.**

**I know I said this would be D/E chapter, and it does have lots of them in it, but I couldn't resist myself with the sMut, especially since I know lots of you have been asking me for it. I will attempt to give the D/E people their sMut soon too, once they can make up and forgive each other : )**

**.**

**CHAPTER 25**

.

Eric is on the living room couch sleeping fitfully. He flips to one side, then the other, reliving the slap across the face Donna gave him over and over again. As he turns back around again his eyelids flutter for a moment until he notices a strange, hooded figure huddled on the floor across from where he is sleeping.

.

He jumps with a start and fists the covers in his hands. "Wh-who are you?" he calls out into the dark void, petrified.

.

A spark appears, followed by the sound of burning paper.

.

Donna takes down her hood and sighs. "Who do you think?" she exhales.

.

"Jesus Donna. You looked like a Sith Lord, sitting there" he tells her while trying to regulate his breathing.

.

"Really Eric? You honestly thought I was a Sith Lord?" she asks dryly as she takes another hit.

.

He squirms in his seat. "They exist...anyway, I thought you didn't want to talk to me until tomorrow."

.

"It is tomorrow." she points out, gesturing to the digital clock on the VCR that reads '3:50am'. "I couldn't sleep" she admits quietly.

.

"Do you really want to talk now?" he offers. "I don't care what time it is, if you want to talk, we'll talk."

.

"I don't want to talk. I'm okay to listen though, so if you have some big speech prepared, lay it on me," she tells him.

.

"I could probably recite Gale Sayers speech from the end of 'Brian's Song' but I wouldn't want to bring you down" he jokes.

.

"Eric..." she breathes.

.

"I know. Sorry." He laughs nervously. "God, I don't really know where to start."

.

"Here's an idea, start with the first time you left me – on the day before our wedding" she suggests, taking a third and last drag before stubbing out the joint.

.

"Oh, we're going that far back?" he titters anxiously. "I didn't realize."

.

"Now you do" she says coldly. "Not sure if you've noticed, but you've established a bit of a pattern where you leave me whenever you can't seem to deal with your life."

.

"It's been pointed out to me in the past. Yes." he admits.

.

"Jackie?" she questions. "Of course it was Jackie, who else?" she grumbles, answering her own question.

.

"The first time I left you it was just a case of cold feet. I mean, we were kids. We had no business getting married." he asserts.

.

She nods. "I would agree with that. So what about #2—when you left for Africa?"

.

"The program was going to pay for college" he reminds her.

.

She shakes her head. "That's not why you went and you know it. There were other ways you could have paid for it."

.

"Okay. I know this is going to sound whiny and existential, but you want the truth, so here it is: I was afraid that Point Place was all I'd ever get out of life. I'm not even sure what I was expecting from Africa, but that was kind of the point, you know? I just didn't want to be one of those guys who lives in the same spot his whole life, doing the same thing every day, never going anywhere or accomplishing anything of consequence. I didn't want to toil away like an Oompah Loompah at some crap job for 50 years, just waiting to die." he explains, breathless from his monologue.

.

"And people call me a depressive" she deadpans. "You've gotten dark, Eric."

.

He shakes his head. "I've always been dark. Why do you think I like Star Wars so much?"

.

She stifles a laugh. "What? You think you're Luke Skywalker? I always assumed you were joking when you said that...or hoped, at least."

.

Eric climbs down from the couch so he can be eye-level with his ex. "Donna, I don't want to be a moisture farmer on Tatooine."

.

"Okay..." She looks at him with a mixture of pity and contempt. "You're really not kidding about this Star Wars thing, are you?"

.

"No, that's not exactly what I...what I mean is that I didn't want to be stuck working at Pricemart, or an elementary school, or anything else that locked me down to Point Place" he discloses.

.

"I locked you down too, right? I thought you liked Point Place. It's our home." she says defensively.

.  
He nods. "I did. I do. I just...the world is big and I want to see it."

.

"You think I don't?" she asks indignantly.

.

"I guess I didn't think – " he tells her.

.

"No. You didn't." she admonishes. "You think you're the only one who wants to get away? You never bothered to ask me."

.

He nods. "You're right. I guess I just assumed you wouldn't leave your dad or your friends."

.

Donna has a thought and her eyebrows shoot up. "Are you sure this isn't about not wanting to fuck just one girl for the rest of your life? I mean, maybe it's not Point Place you were running from. Maybe it was me?" she brainstorms aloud.

.

"I don't have to screw ten other girls to know that I lucked out. In fact, whenever I'm around other girls, it just reminds me of how good I have it...or _had_ it, I suppose." he tells her earnestly.

.

"Other girls like Jackie?" she questions.

.

He exhales. "Why are you so fixated on her? I thought you two were good now. I mean, she practically tore my head off like a Praying Mantis last night on your behalf" he rubs the sleep from his eyes.

.

She runs her hands through her hair. "I guess I just don't understand why you went to Mexico with her instead of staying to work things out with me" she confesses, her eyes getting teary. "I mean, I know she's beautiful and all, but you loved me...at least I thought you did."

.

"Come on, Donna" he insists, crawling closer to her. "You're the only person I've ever loved. You know that."

.

"Then why did you choose her over me?" she asks in a small voice.

.

"I didn't choose her. I left because of us, she had nothing to do with it" he asserts, desperate to hold her hands, but unable to work up the nerve to reach for them.

.

Donna sighs and wipes her tears off on the back of her hoodie sleeve. "But you nailed her." she says, more of a statement than a question. "You ran away with my best friend and then you screwed around with her."

.

Eric's hands delve through his hair and scratch his scalp. "I'm trying to figure out how this is different from what you did with Kelso a few years ago."

.

"I didn't..." she gives up her weak protest. The fact is, she had messed around with Kelso while they were on the drive to California. She may have claimed he was the aggressor, groping her without permission, but she knew what he was doing and she had let him. Part of her wanted to punish Eric for rejecting her, and what better way than to fool around with his idiot best friend. Jackie hadn't even crossed her mind.

.

Anger flares up in her veins. "You rejected me after I begged you to take me back. It wasn't the other way around." she counters.

.

"Yeah, that time. But it was you who told me that I should move on at the New Year's party. You told me that you already had" he reminds her, his own latent anger starting to seep into his tone.

.

She opens her mouth to speak, but all that escapes is a tiny sob, caught in the back of her throat. He was right about Mexico. He never would have left if she hadn't told him to.

.

He finally throws caution to the wind and grabs her hands. "Donna look, we both made mistakes. We both did things we're not proud of, but I still love you—more than ever. I know you don't trust me and I don't blame you, but I want to make it better. Do you still..." he takes a breath, not sure if he wants to ask this question, because if the answer were no, he wouldn't be able to handle it.

.

Donna nods, tears streaming down her pink cheeks. "Of course I still love you, you dillhole" she sniffs. "Don't ask me why, I just do."

.

Eric reaches out and wipes away her tears with his thumbs. "Remember how we used to look at the moon every night on the hood of the Vista Cruiser?"

.

She nods.

.

"When we were apart, I'd look at it every night and wonder if you were seeing it too. I thought maybe if you did you'd know I was thinking about you." he confides.

.

She tucks her hair behind her ears. "Some nights I did, especially on the boat after you left. I didn't feel you thinking about me though, I just felt really alone."

.

Tears start to well in Eric's eyes as he dips down to meet her gaze. "I'm sorry. I'm a huge asshole, and if it takes me 20 years to win your trust back, I'll still try."

.

She brings his hand to her face and uses it to wipe her tears away. "It just may."

.

* * *

.

It's morning now and Hyde walks into Jackie's room wearing nothing but a towel and a slick coating of water that beads down his torso. "Do you mind if I borrow a t-shirt?" he asks, smelling the one he just took off.

.

Jackie stirs and cat-stretches before looking up at him. "I doubt I have any large enough to fit you" she says, her eyes immediately drawn to his strongly built chest. She swallows hard. "You can poke around. Maybe one of Donna's big girl shirts found it's way into my drawer?" she suggests as she pulls the covers back over her head.

.

"I can always pick something up while I'm out" he shrugs.

.

Jackie's eyes grow wide and she pulls the covers back down. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

.

"What? That I need to go shopping for clothes?" he asks casually, knowing full well this will turn her on more than a box of chocolates would. "Why? You wanna come with?"

.

Her face gets very serious. "You want to go shopping with me?"

.

He shrugs again. "I figured you could help me pick stuff out, but whatever."

.

A massive grin creeps across her face as she sits up and puts on a pair of pink marabou slippers, but then she remembers something and her face falls. "I'm supposed to go out to coffee with Michael" she pouts.

.

"That's cool. I just figured I might get myself a whole new wardrobe while I'm in the shopping capital of the country. Pretty sure if I go alone you're all gonna be looking at concert T's for the next five years, but then again, there's probably a ton of chicks in the shop who'd be more than willing to help me find a pair of pants that fit." he says, setting the bait before holding his breath to see if she takes it.

.

A stab of panic rips through Jackie's chest as she imagines a bunch of skanks helping Steven get undressed in a changing room. "Stay there. I'm just going to go brush my teeth. You're coming for coffee with me and we'll set off from there." She orders before running out of the bedroom.

.

Hyde smiles smugly as he saunters over to her t-shirt drawer and peers inside. Something immediately catches his eye and he reaches in to take it.

.

* * *

.

Jackie and Hyde enter the living room with haste.

.

"Where are the two of you going?" Fez asks suspiciously while drinking his coffee.

.

"We're just going out shopping" Hyde says.

.

"For medical supplies" Jackie pipes in, earning a raised eyebrow from her ex. "Steven has a foot fungus" she announces, much to Fez's disgust.

.

Hyde looks at her like she's grown another head.

.

"Why are you American men so neglectful with your personal grooming?" he sneers.

.

"What are you up to today, Fezzy?" she wonders.

.

"Well, shopping sounded good until you told me what you were buying" he shudders with disgust.

.

"Suit yourself" Hyde expresses jauntily as he grabs Jackie's hand and leads her out of the front door.

.

Jackie yanks his arm back, giving him whiplash. "Perhaps Fez could look after Angie?" she mentions with wide eyes.

.

It takes Hyde a moment to figure out what she's suggesting but then it hits him. "You know, my sister's all on her own today. I'd bet she'd like somebody to show her around, you know, to take her to the best stores. You can just call the hotel and ask for her room. You in?"

.

Fez tries to contain his excitement. "Oh, you think she wouldn't mind hanging out with me?" he asks as he takes his cup to the kitchen for a refill.

.

"She thinks you're cool, man" Hyde calls after him.

.

"For whatever reason..." Jackie mumbles under her breath.

.

Hyde squeezes her hand as a signal to stop the cattiness. "You'd better can it unless you want to listen to him ramble on about side-boob all day" he whispers.

.

"Consider me as good as mute, which just means I'll talk slightly less" she answers. "I had to tell him we were shopping for something disgusting or he would have come along."

.

"What? You want me all to yourself?" he asks suggestively.

.

"Hardly. I just didn't feel like fighting him over whether or not you can pull off spandex." she jibes. "For the record, you can't."

.

"You've gotten very Machiavellian in your old age." he notes.

.

She flicks his earlobe hard. "Next time you call me old, I'll be flicking you a lot lower" she warns.

.

"Promise?" he wiggles his eyebrows as he pushes her out the front door.

.

* * *

.

Michael is waiting at a diner for Jackie to arrive and looks visibly thrown when she walks in with her old friend from the night before. He stands to greet her and lays an extra long kiss on her mouth, forcing Jackie to pull away to get some air. Hyde averts his eyes as usual.

.

"You're happy to see me today" she smiles as he pulls out her chair.

.

"I'm always happy to see you, baby" Michael swoons.

.

Hyde locks his jaw to prevent himself from saying something he'll regret.

.

"Didn't realize you were bring company" he mentions tersely.

.

Jackie ignores his jealous tone. "You remember Steven from last night?"

.

"Hyde" the man with the afro corrects. "I go by Hyde."

.

Michael acknowledges him with a half-nod and turns his attention back to the tiny brunette. "You look really pretty today."

.

"Just today?" she pouts, hoping to reel in some more compliments.

.

"Every day, of course" he corrects himself.

.

Hyde rolls his eyes hard and waves down the waitress. "Coffee please?"

.

"How do you want it, honey?" the middle-aged woman asks.

.

"Black" he tells her. "And she'll have a latte with no sugar" he says, ordering for Jackie.

.

Michael is put-off by this alpha-male display. "I'll have Earl Grey tea. Sure you don't want a tea, baby? I know you've been complaining about how much caffeine you've been drinking lately."

.

"Next time" she says. "I'm shattered from last night and could use the chemical high."

.

Hyde expressions twists and he wonders why Jackie would bother dating a guy who drinks tea. Even Forman is too butch for tea.

.

As if reading his mind, she comes to Michael's defense. "Michael is a Broadway actor. He drinks a lot of tea because the hot water is soothing to his throat."

.

"You're an actor? You do matinees too?" he asks his rival.

.

"Eight days a week" the dreamboat responds in jest.

.

"Not bad."Hyde nods in appreciation—not for Michael's job, but for knowing he'll be able to get his ex alone during the afternoons as well as evenings.

.

"I actually can't stay too long, because one of the main actors is sick and I have to run lines with the understudy before the show." he explains. "Plus it takes me an hour to get into makeup."

.

Jackie pushes her bottom lip out. "Aww, well we'll miss you while we're shopping. Steven needs to buy some new pants."

.

He looks at his new girl and the man next to her and then scowls. "I'll bet he does."

.

The three of them drink their beverages in virtual solitude, other than Hyde grabbing Jackie's thigh under the table every time Michael asks for a refill of tea.

.

Eventually they finish up and Michael gives Jackie another bracing kiss, claiming her like a dog might mark its territory. This time Hyde doesn't look away, but instead peers right into Michael's eyes with a hint of a grin and a truckload of bravado.

.

"Enjoy your day shopping, baby" Michael coos in a voice one might use with a baby.

.

Jackie is bit put off by it, but goes with the flow. "Thanks Michael. I'll call you later."

.

Hyde and Jackie leave the coffee shop and walk down the block without saying a word. After a few minutes, Hyde pulls her by her hand into an alleyway and gives her a look. "That guy drinks tea" he complains. "You're ruining my reputation by following me up with that guy" he points in the direction of the diner with derision.

.

Jackie cackles. "You're not serious!"

.

"I am" he insists.

.

"Maybe I'm looking for a sensitive guy, ever think of that?" she taunts.

.

"He's too sensitive. He spoke to you like you were a baby" he reminds her.

.

"Maybe he thinks I'm as cute as a baby?" she responds gleefully, enjoying getting a rise out of him.

.

"He wears makeup!" he yells, exasperated.

.

"I love makeup!" she yells back happily.

.

Hyde's face is pensive as he tries to decide whether or not he's being punked. "You really want that kind of guy?" he wonders, very seriously.

.

She shrugs. "I've pretty much struck out with all the other kinds of guys. Why _not _him?"

.

"Well for one, he's going to need you to give him stage directions in bed" he grins.

.

"You always said I like bossing guys around" She pushes him playfully before dragging him back onto the sidewalk. "Speaking of which, you promised me a day of shopping, so let's go."

.

He nods and follows her into a trendy men's boutique.

.

* * *

.

Looking around, Hyde feels extremely out of place in this nearly empty, high-end retail palace. "Jackie, I'm not sure this is my scene, you know?"

.

Ignoring him, she whips around the store and scoops up a bunch of jeans and funky shirts in his size and hands them to him to carry.

.

Dazed, he follows her around like a lemming watching in awe as she works. "How long am I going to have to stand here?" he grumbles.

.

"Stop being such a big baby, Steven...unless you'd like me to talk to you in my baby voice. I know how much you love that" she winks coquettishly, which instantly makes his groin ache.

.

After a few more laps around the store, she pulls him toward the dressing rooms and selects the biggest one in the back of the store.

.

* * *

.

**WARNING: sMut Ahead!**

.

Jackie turns toward a stunned Hyde and motions for him to strip while she organizes the clothes to try on by type.

.

"You want me to take everything off?" he asks, hoping she says yes.

.

She smiles. "You can leave your boxers on."

.

He undoes the button on his jeans and slowly unzips them, revealing the end destination of his happy trail. "What if I'm not wearing boxers?"

.

"Fine. Briefs, whatever." she says dismissively.

.

"What if I'm not wearing briefs?" he continues.

.

She bites her bottom lip hard and takes a deep breath. "You're going commando? (pause) Well, I did shower you when you were hurt, so I guess I can deal. Let's go!" she claps her hands a few times to wake him up.

.

"Help me get this sweater off?" he asks, looking at her helplessly.

.

"You can't take a sweater off by yourself?" she looks at him incredulously, but then indulges him anyway.

.

She moves closer to him and lifts the cotton blend from his body, uncovering a pink t-shirt that he borrowed earlier, Jackie's unicorn one. The shirt is so tight and small that it looks like he's wearing a half-shirt, but it shows off his toned abs nicely and she can't seem to take her eyes away.

.

She laughs hard and traces the sparkly outline of the mythical horse. "Finally come to your senses about unicorns, huh? I accept your apology."

.

He smiles. "Well, you said I always make fun of the things you like, so I figured this might be the best way to show you I wholeheartedly support your interests." he explains.

.

"Really?" she wonders skeptically.

.

He shrugs and turns to look at himself in the full-length mirror. "I'm in public wearing a toddler-sized unicorn shirt. That doesn't scream supportive?"

.

She licks her lips and continues to stare at him through the mirror with amusement. "It does. You don't have to wear it anymore, I believe you."

.

"Not my color?" He jokes, happy with his ability to play her like a fiddle. "You want me to take it off? I think you're going to have to help me, because it's pretty tight." he requests, quickly changing the energy in the room.

.

"Hold your arms up" she gestures as she fingers the hem of the shirt, slowly bringing it up over his head. As she leans in to push his head through, she can feel evidence of Steven's arousal pressing up against her stomach and it makes her insides feel like molten lava.

.

Jackie's body rubs back and forth against his erection as they struggle to free him from the shirt. As she finally untangles him from his fabric glitter-bomb prison, she finds herself pressed up against his naked chest and wonders when the room got ten degrees warmer.

.

She closes her eyes and breathes deeply, inhaling his sweet, intoxicating natural musk. Instinctively, his hand goes into her hair and he strokes it gently as his other arm snakes around her waist. They remain in this intimate embrace for longer than is prudent, and neither wants to be the first one to let go.

.

"Jackie" Hyde whispers, checking in on her. "Are you okay?" he asks as his insides quiver every time her hot breath caresses his chest.

.

She opens her eyes and blinks twice, suddenly remembering where she is and who she is with. She nods and continues holding onto him.

.

His heart breaks a little when he thinks about how strong her attachment to him still is, even after everything he's put them both through. He leans down and kisses the top of her head. "You sure?"

.

She pulls back for a moment, breaking their contact, leaving Hyde feeling cold and empty where she once provided warmth.

.

Watching her intently, he can sense her internal struggle before settling into resignation. A wave of exhilaration passes over her features as she slowly starts to unbutton her shirt before removing it completely and tossing it to the ground. She walks back into his chest and resumes the embrace, pressing her naked breasts against his torso. "That's better" she sighs, happy to have her bare skin against his.

.

Hyde is rock hard now and struggles to remain a gentleman. All he wants to do is wrap her legs around his waist and bang the shit out of her up against the mirror, but it's not his call to make. She has to initiate this herself or he'll forever worry that he pushed her into it.

.

She can feel him poking out of the top of his open jeans and half-way nestled in her torso. Ever so slowly, he shifts slightly, which creates a bit of friction. She allows it to happen—never looking down, never commenting on it.

.

"Jackie" he whispers again into her hair. "Come on" he tells her, not being specific in his demand.

.

She lifts her head up to look at him and is caught by his gaze.

.

"Tell me what you want" he implores.

.

She considers his question for a beat and then abandons all pretense as she grapples for him like the last life raft on a sinking ship.

.

Jackie moans into his mouth as he possessively descends onto hers taking her lips and tongue hungrily into his mouth. His hands fist her hair as they bring her closer to him. With a handful of curly locks, Hyde yanks her head back and slowly licks the length of her neck, causing her breath to hitch.

.

"Oh God" she gasps as he continues his assault up and down her collar bone, softly dragging his lips against it, barely making contact with the skin, yet inflaming every spot he grazes past. "Please Steven" she whimpers as she tries to pull his jeans down over his ass. "I want you so badly" she whispers desperately.

.

Her face is buried in his neck as he plays with her nipples, rolling them in his fingers at first, then teasing them with his mouth as she runs her fingers through his hair and tries to stifle a groan.

.

"God baby, you are so fucking hot. I want to be inside of you. Do you want to feel me inside of you?" he asks, begging her for confirmation.

.

She grabs his face and kisses him deep and hard until both their lips are swollen. "I want you so far inside I feel you hit the back." She reaches for his erection and strokes him in her hand.

.

Hyde reaches under Jackie's skirt and tears her underwear down and off of her legs. He lifts her up against the wall of the changing room and she compliantly wraps her thighs around his waist and holds onto his shoulders tightly.

.

He looks into her eyes and can see her naked desire for him. He smiles a crooked grin as he places himself at her entrance, getting her hot with anticipation. She bucks her hips to push herself on him, but he just holds her in place.

.

"I love you, Jackie" he whispers softly as he slowly slips inside of her, causing them both to groan with pleasure as he fills her insides.

.

The look on his face and the words coming out of his mouth send her over the edge almost immediately. He holds her as she shakes, her release coming in several waves. His hand quickly covers her mouth as she screams her ecstasy.

.

"Shh" he smiles, looking furtively toward the door of the changing room. "You're gonna get us kicked out and I'm not ready to leave yet" he warns.

.

Out of breath, she looks up at him and smiles. "Guess I was really turned on. Shopping does that to me, you know." she jokes.

.

"Me too" he smirks as he start hammering her against the wall, getting her worked up again quickly.

.

From the corner of her eye, Jackie watches herself in the mirror next to them and marvels at how alive she looks when she's with him. She's never seen herself like this before and the erotic show is making the whole experience even better. "Look" she points to the mirror as she watches Hyde's ass flex every time he enters her. "I love to watch your ass while you push into me" she hisses.

.

"When did you get so kinky?" he asks as he bounces her higher and harder, stroking her with everything he has in him. "Not that I'm complaining. At all."

.

Jackie can feel her insides begin to percolate as he tightens up inside of her, nearing the edge.

.

"Come on Jackie" he orders, wanting her to finish first before he lets himself go. "Get me wet."

.

As he feels her muscles clench, she shrieks loudly forcing him to cover her screams with his mouth. She returns the favor by absorbing his own noises as she takes him over the cliff with her.

.

He explodes inside of her with a long groan and continues to pump her hard until he's empty. Sweaty and spent, Hyde sinks down to the chair with her still on his lap.

.

"Not too bad for a guy with a limp" he gloats.

.

"Not bad at all" she concurs, as she gingerly caresses his scar with her fingertips.

.

He brushes her sweaty hair off her neck and skims the back of his hand against her flushed cheeks as he appreciates her beauty. Though he's seen her in this exact scenario at least a hundred times before, she always manages to take his breath away. "You're beautiful" he says with longing in his eyes, too enamored with her to mock himself for feeling this way.

.

Jackie sighs and holds his head to her chest. "Did you mean it?"

.

"Mean what?" he asks, playing dumb.

.

"What you said. When you told me you...that you love me. Did you mean that?" she wonders hopefully.

.

Hyde says nothing, only nodding his response against her chest. She smiles and plants a kiss on the top of his head. "Me too." she says, holding him tightly.

.

"So, um, does that mean you're gonna break up with MacBeth?" he asks, feeling as uneasy and uncertain of her affection as he ever was.

.

"You think that's really necessary?" she muses pensively.

.

He raises an eyebrow at her. "Uh...yeah."

.

She straddles his lap. "I was kidding, Steven. Of course I'm going to ditch him. He drinks tea." she wrinkles her nose and closes her legs around him. "But uh, only if you promise me you'll always talk to me about things." she says in an uncertain voice.

.

Hyde frowns. "You know I'm not that chatty, especially about the kind of stuff you like to talk about."

.

Her bottom lip pouts and he leans over to kiss it away. "But, you'll run off again if you don't" she insists in a shaky voice.

.

"I won't run off" he says resolutely, pressing his forehead to hers. "Even if things get bad, I'd rather be miserable with you than without you. And I'll try to talk, just as long as you promise to have all of our little pow-wows in the nude." he grins lasciviously.

.

"That" she kisses him softly, "can be arranged" she purrs, kissing him again and again.

.

**A/N – Okay, not too much D/E as you can tell, but hopefully I made up for it with sizzling J on H action. D/E still have a ton to work through, but J/H are on the path to happiness. I feel like Hyde learned a lot during the weeks she nursed him back to health and truly is sorry about the way he treated her.**

**.**

**FYI-I was not implying that Donna had sex with Kelso, just that during the ride over to California, she willingly let him feel her up. On the show she said he kept doing it and she kept complaining, but in my AU version of it, she didn't complain, making her a somewhat willing participant.**

**.**

**Did you like the sMut? Hot or not? Please review!**


	26. Chapter 26

**This chapter has light sMut in the first scene, so it's rated M. The rest of the chapter is rated T.**

**.**

**FYI - for those of you who are missing Kelso, he *will* make a reappearance-not in this chapter, but soon :)**

**.**

**CHAPTER 26**

.

Jackie and Hyde are naked in his hotel bed, eating Chinese food from their cartons.

.

"When you said you wanted to buy me lunch I thought...Le Cirque or Lutece" she muses, as she shoves another chopstick full of lo-mein into her mouth. "Well, not _thought_, obviously, but you know...hoped."

.

"With your post-sex appetite, it's probably a good thing I didn't take you somewhere fancy or I'd have to sell my return ticket to pay the tab" he jokes.

.

She chews her next bite quietly as the wheels in her head spin. "Maybe you should" she suggests without making eye contact. They've only been reunited a few hours and already the idea of him leaving makes her heart feel like it's being squeezed in a vice.

.

Silently processing this, his emotions swell knowing she actually wants him to stay. It's a far cry from her bolting on him after Christmas, and it can only mean that she trusts him again. "Maybe I will" he says casually as he leans over to steal a shrimp from her carton.

.

Her eyes grow wide and she pushes herself onto his lap. "Are you being serious? Don't say it if you're not." she adds quickly.

.

He can't help but smile at her enthusiasm. "I mean, not for good but maybe for a few months while I work on promoting this concert. It all depends on whether or not people make me feel welcome in the Big Apple." he says, bucking his hips slightly to nudge her in the right place.

.

She gives him a saucy look, grabs his food and then places it on the side table next to her own. She starts lightly grinding against his lap. "You'll have to tell me how I'm doing so far." she flirts.

.

He frowns and then complains. "I was eating that." he grumbles, referring to the food she's just snatched from his hands.

.

"Oh, well if you're eating, I can always go." She points to the door and starts to rise off of his lap.

.

He scowls and places his hands on her hips to hold her down before she has a chance to get up. "No you can't. You've been detained."

.

"How are you going to keep me here? Do you plan on tying me up?" she asks suggestively, hopefully.

.

Hyde's mouth drops open in mock horror. "First you're getting off on watching us in the mirror and now you want me to tie you up? Were you dating an older Frenchman before me or something?" he teases.

.

"I didn't realize you were such a prude." She flips her hair across her bare shoulders. "Maybe I'm just blossoming sexually?" her smile flashes tauntingly.

.

He narrows his eyes, then throws her violently to the bed and climbs on top of her, causing her to squeal with laughter. "Oh you are gonna get it, Buelah" he growls. "And you won't be able to walk when I'm done with you. Try leaving the room then." he challenges, mocking her feeble attempt to leave.

.

She writhes beneath him with intent. He attacks her neck with his mouth and her body involuntarily arches toward his as she falls helplessly bewitched by the intensity of his ardor. "Steven" she moans breathlessly as he lavishes his attention on all of her favorite spots.

.

As his kisses migrate North to her mouth, they become more languid and full of feeling. Her fingers make their way into his hair as he slides one hand down her curves to feel her wet core. "God, Jackie" he moans. "It took everything I had not to beat the living shit out of Hamlet when he started kissing you at the diner" he says as he slips two fingers inside of her.

.

She gasps and her chest begins to rise and fall more rapidly. "Maybe you should have taken me shopping sooner then" she hitches as he lazily sucks the base of her neck.

.

The pace of this session is slow and relaxing, with none of the desperation and frantic energy of their dressing room encounter. She pulls him tightly to her body and pants into his mouth as his friction increases.

.

"...or maybe I should've not screwed things up with you to begin with" he suggests, quickly bringing her out of her aroused state.

.

She slows his hand with her own and pouts her bottom lip out. "It wasn't all your fault, Steven. I mean, yeah, a lot of it was, but not everything. None of that matters anymore though, because I've realized that regardless of where I am or who I'm with, I'm always thinking about you" she says with a tired smile as she peppers his mouth with a few soft kisses.

.

He looks into her eyes and can almost see his future in them. "Me too" he says hoarsely.

.

"It's going to be different this time, right?" she asks, her tone fearful but optimistic.

.

He leans on his elbows, perches over her and gently strokes shiny chocolate strands of hair from her face, leaving featherlite kisses in their wake. "Yeah. It'll be different" he confirms while looking down into her green and blue eyes.

.

"Good" she nods, "because I don't think I can survive another one of our epic breakups." she takes a deep, cleansing breath and releases it into the ether.

.

"We're not breaking up, okay? I'm not going anywhere. It's you and me from now on, baby." he kisses her lips and then traces them with his index finger before kissing them again.

.

"No cheating" she warns.

.

"No cheating" he shakes his head. "You know, I didn't want those other chicks Jackie. I never would have done anything with any other girl if I hadn't thought you were...you know. If I wasn't trying to punish you like a huge moron."

.

A spark of sadness erupts and settles in her expression. He barely even flirted with other girls when they were happy, but when his paranoia got the better of him he always went on the rampage taking a little bit of her confidence with him each time. How can she be sure he won't do that to her again? Two times is more than enough to have your heart broken by one man.

.

"But you trust me now, right?" she cautiously asks.

.

Jackie's never been good at hiding how she feels, which has always been both a blessing and a curse for him. On one hand, he never wondered if she loved him, she said so every day—probably more in one year than his mother told him his entire life. Even when she didn't say it, it was always there, written plainly across her features. If only he could've done the same for her.

.

The downside is that there's no escaping the hurt when he disappoints her, because she telegraphs her pain like Morse Code. Every callous remark or let her down is reflected right back at him, like a magnifying mirror pointing out his every flaw. "It doesn't come easy to me, but I trust you" he tells her apprehensively. "I know now that you would never be with some other guy when you're with me." he admits with earnest.

.

"I've been in love with you since I was sixteen. It's hard for me to be with another guy even when I'm _not_ with you" she confesses.

.

Hyde smiles and kisses her forehead. "Same here, kid." He looks down at the beautiful woman beneath him and wonders how he conned her into loving such a damaged burnout. He may not know how to love her the way she deserves but he sure as hell is going to try to learn, which is more than he's ever done for anyone in the past.

.

"Hey, how about I take you to one of those fancy French places for dinner tonight?" he offers. "I'll even put on a shirt with buttons for you if you're well-behaved." he promises as he teases her entrance with his erection.

.

Did he just ask her out somewhere posh or is she hearing things? Since when does Steven Hyde invest time and money in romance? Butterflies take flight in her stomach. He's trying to change...for her? He doesn't even know how to make change at the supermarket, much less appropriate it into his own life.

As a child of privilege, Jackie's been bred to appreciate the finer things in life. And she does. A lot. She's no stranger to waking up at 4am for a good sale, and could grade a diamond by bare sight before the age of 12. But right now she's happy. Really, really happy – and she's not wearing any clothes, much less designer ones. Suddenly, she realizes that the thought of trading Chinese take-out for a sit-down lobster dinner no longer holds an allure for her. Not if it means getting out of bed and leaving behind the blissful little bubble they've created together.

She thinks about it for a second then shakes her head. "Nah. I'd rather see you with no shirt on than in a button-down. Besides, we both know I'm never well-behaved for too long."

.

Hyde can't believe she just turned down an expensive meal just to stay in bed with him. She's growing up. He touches her nose with the tip of his finger. "_That _is what I'm counting on, baby." he grins cheekily as he pushes inside of her with a groan.

.

* * *

.

Fez and Angie are walking through SoHo window shopping at art galleries.

.

"Lunch was so good. I've never eaten pizza from a coal oven before" she says excitedly.

.

The foreigner laughs. "That's practically every meal where I'm from."

.

She turns to look at him. "Fez, where _are_ you from?"

.

"It's so small it doesn't even show up on most maps. Sometimes, when I see a picture like this one" he explains, pointing to a Gauguin, "I remember my grandparents and think that's probably how they used to live" he smiles. "Things were a lot more straight-forward back then. No confusing grey area."

.

She nods pensively. "I know what you mean. There are so many choices out there nowadays that you can never seem to quiet all the noise in your head. I mean, I love living in the city, but sometimes I daydream about moving to a small fishing village or something. The only decision I'd have to make there is what type of bait to use."

.

Fez grimaces. "You fish?"

.

She laughs. "Of course not! It just sounds like it might be relaxing."

.

He looks intently at her and raises an eyebrow. "Wanna find out?"

.

Angie smirks in disbelief. "Are you serious? Oh my God, you _are_ serious!"

.

"You've never been fishing, right?" he confirms.

.

She shakes her head. "I'm going to be the only girl who comes to New York City and ends up going fishing. Steven will be like 'Hey Ange, where'd you two run off to—shopping, a Broadway show?' and I'll get to say 'Nope. Gone fishin'!'" she says like a yokel and giggles, sweeping Fez up in her euphoria.

.

"Let me hear this accent of yours, again" he challenges. "It's very authentic" he deadpans.

.

Her eyes sparkle "My nerdy moments are free, but if you want me to truly embarrass myself in front of you, you're going to have to get to know me better. And also, you're going to have to get me drunk."

.

"I'm more than okay with both of those requirements" he jokes. "but I would like to add candy to the mix as well." he suggests.

.

She strokes her chin thoughtfully. "Are we talking movie theater candy or the weird stuff?"

.

"I think we both know I'm into the weird stuff" Fez grins. "But I am also a man who can appreciate the classics" he says, gesturing to his beautiful companion.

.

Angie blushes an demurely twists a cocoa-colored curl around her finger before lifting her eyes to his. "Where would we go with this stash of weird candy?"

.

"There are trains out to Long Island every hour" he informs her. "The Sound is beautiful this time of year."

.

"This is happening, isn't it?" she asks with enthusiasm.

.

"Do you want it to?" Fez leans in, closing the space between them.

.

Feeling the heat generating between them, she takes a breath and slips her hand into his. "As a matter of fact...I do".

.

* * *

.

Donna and Eric sit on the floor of her bedroom silently facing one another, each smoking their own joint.

.

"How much of this stuff did you say you brought back with you?" she wonders while examining the fruit of his bumper crop.

.

"Let's just say...I took the train. If I had taken a flight we might be having this conversation through bullet proof glass" he cracks.

.

"So...are you a drug dealer now or something?" she asks with light disapproval.

.

"I just thought if I could make enough money to stay here for a while, with enough time I could wear you down" he confesses.

.

Her brow furrows with confusion. "You're saying you became a drug trafficker in order to win me back?"

.

"Yes. That was the well thought-out plan" Eric reveals before erupting into a goofy smile. "Is it working?"

.

She laughs at his joke despite herself. "Not yet."

.

"Well, then I guess I'm going to have to dig a little deeper into my bag of tricks," he mumbles while gazing at her from across the wood floor. "That's permanent, huh?" he asks, gesturing to her newly curled hair.

.

"Yeah, I mean...well it's not permanent but it is _a_ permanent. I can always shave my head or wait for it to grow out if it looks bad" she tells him self-consciously. "Why? Does it suck?" she asks nervously.

.

"Like you could ever look bad. Even on your worst day, you're like freaking Venus on the half-shell" he comments, unable to fathom how she doesn't ever see herself objectively.

.

Everywhere they've ever gone people are always staring at her. Between her long legs, red hair and her creamy porcelain skin, she's like a walking perfume ad. He's more like an ad for children's cereal. Coco Puffs and Chanel #5 make a really odd sight walking down the street together. She never seemed to notice what a disparate couple they made, but he always did. How could he not?

.

"You look beautiful, but you always do to me" he says, giving her a lopsided smile.

.

She exhales a breath she didn't realize she was holding and steels her resolve. "Thanks Eric" she nods. "But in this case, flattery will get you nowhere." Donna licks her lips and takes another drag off her joint.

.

He shrugs. "I can wait" he says with self-satisfaction as he matches her drag for drag.

.

She scolds him for his bravado with a sharp look that quickly dissipates into a begrudging admiration for his refusal to give up on her.

.

* * *

.

Fez and Angie sit at the bow of the boat, holding fishing rods and drinking beer.

.

"Anything yet?" he asks, checking the water below them for some movement.

.

"Nothing. I can't believe we've been at this an hour and we haven't gotten one bite" she pouts.

.

"They say fishing is an art form that requires patience" he edifies.

.

"I don't know about it being an art form, but it is helping me with my color" she smiles, touching the slight tan she's getting on her cheeks. "At least we can say we finally tried it, right?"

.

"Tried? No, with Fez there is no try. I _will_ catch a fish" he insists. "and so will you."

.

She nods resolutely "Of course we will".

.

He pulls a bag of gummy worms out of his pocket and offers them to her. "Perhaps this will help you out."

.

She pulls a blue worm out of the bag and watches it undulate in the air between them. "You really think this will help me catch fish?"

.

He chuckles. "Angie my princess, I said it would help you out, not that it would help you catch a fish" he raises his eyebrows at her. "It's for energy!"

.

Her eyes crinkle with laughter as she lowers the worm into her mouth and chews it fiercely.

.

Fez's heart skips a beat, he really appreciates a woman who knows how to take down a giant piece of candy in one go.

.

He reaches into his other pocket and pulls out a bag of Swedish Fish. He reaches inside, pulls one out and tosses it to her. "Think fast" he calls, alerting her.

.

She catches it in her left hand and looks at it curiously.

.

"I told you that you'd catch a fish" he grins mischievously.

.

She tosses it back to him and he reaches up and plucks it from the air.

.

"Now we've both caught fish" she announces proudly.

.

He sighs sadly. "Now that we've caught fish, I guess we can go back now. I mean, you know, if you're bored" he offers halfheartedly.

.

Angie cocks her head in his direction. "Whoever said I was bored?"

.

* * *

.

Jackie and Hyde are side by side, sweaty and post-coital for the fourth time that day.

.

"I think I'm dehydrated" she coughs, stroking the length of her throat softly. Hyde looks over at her elongated neck and feels a little weak in the knees. If she doesn't put on a fucking turtleneck soon, he's going to get bed sores from being horizontal for so long.

.

"If you think you're dehydrated..." he cracks, her hand instantly slaps over his mouth to prevent him from talking further.

.

"Don't ruin the moment by being disgusting" she admonishes.

.

Hyde smiles beneath her firm palm and then quickly yanks it down. "You didn't think I was too disgusting when I..."

.

Her hand reasserts itself, sealing off his voice. His eyes dart to the right to look at her with amusement.

.

"You're lucky you're cute" he says, muffled by her surprisingly strong fingers.

.

She pulls her hand down and bats her eyes. "You think I'm cute?"

.

He runs a hand roughly over his face. "God help me, I do."

.

She turns on her side and begins to tickle his arm the way he likes. "You love me" she tells him, a broad smile on her face.

.

He shrugs. "Maybe a little."

.

Jackie flicks his earlobe hard and then goes back to tickling his arm. "You can't live without me." she says gleefully, trying to see how far she can push him.

.

He turns his head to look at her. "Well, I _literally_ couldn't live without you when I got shot and you were looking after me."

.

She pushes her bottom lip out and gives him her best puppy dog eyes.

.

He sighs loudly and then relents. "I guess, you know, the other way too."

.

She squeals and then flips over on her stomach to face him. "You want to spend the rest of your life with me." she announces haphazardly, cursing herself the moment those words leave her lips.

.

Hyde's eyes grow wide and frightened, like the first time his parents 'forgot' him at the mall. He licks his dry lips and tries to look anywhere but her face.

.

Jackie feels like an idiot for pushing him so far. Sure, he's changed, but he's still Steven, and this is the kind of conversation that would normally send him running for the hills. "It's okay, Puddin' Pop. I was just kidding. But hey, I did live up to my part of the agreement-we are having this chat naked." she jokes, trying to lighten the mood.

.

He swallows his parched throat hard, his face still heavy with consternation as his thoughts fly by a mile a minute.

.

She starts to get nervous. He's never let a silence go on for that long after she's said something stupid. Why won't he just complain or yell at her and get it over with already?

.

Finally, after a seemingly endless pause, he looks at her and smiles. "Yeah" he says hesitantly. "I think I do."

.

Jackie's hand now covers her own mouth as she stares at him in silence.

.

He laughs at her reaction. "So...um, do you want to?"

.

She continues gazing at him in shock until he reaches over and pulls her hand down from her face.

.

"Are you...you're not asking...?" she sputters in denial.

.

Hyde shrugs. "What if I was?"

.

Her face crumples as the reality of what's happening hits her like a Mack truck.

.

He wipes the silent tears from her face with his thumbs. "You're supposed to be happy. I'm supposed to be the one crying, doll."

.

She pulls back from him and flicks him in the ear again. "Say it" Jackie demands. "So I know you're serious."

.

There's nobody else for him, nobody who even comes close to making him feel the way that she does. The times they spent apart were some of the worst times he ever lived through. Without her, his life felt aimless and lacking in purpose.

.

Waking up to her face in December was like a reawakening in every sense of the word. He finally got what she seemed to realize years ago. There isn't a woman on this planet or any other who will love him like she does, who would care for him, nurse him back to health and sacrifice for him even when he's treated her like garbage. If he doesn't marry her now and he somehow manges to screw things up again, he'll be ruined.

.

He needs her, and she needs him, because he understands what makes that complicated little enigma tick. He wants to be there to protect her and make her happy, and give her all of the love and affection her parents never did. He owes it to her, and he owes it to himself to stop driving them apart.

.

He takes a deep breath. "I'm serious, Jackie. I want..." he takes another breath before building the courage to pull the trigger. "I do want to be with you forever. I want to – to...marry you." he finally spits it out, looking at her with wild eyes like a cornered animal. It's exhilarating, saying exactly what he feels for once. He's struggled for so many years working up the nerve to tell her how he feels about her, but he never could. Now, it's almost like he can't stop.

.

Suddenly, her tears cease and a sense of calm washes over her. "You do?" she smiles.

.

He nods.

.

"I didn't just trick you into that?" she asks, unsure that he really knows what he's just asked. "I feel like you must be confused about what you're saying."

.

"I'm not confused" he grins as he strokes the line of her jaw lovingly. "So...are you 'in'?" he asks with baited breath.

.

Jackie looks at her boyfriend tenderly and full of pride. "Of course I'm in, Steven! What do you think?" she nods, still not completely believing what actually just happened.

.

"That's cool" he mumbles before bringing her face to his and kissing her like she's the last girl on Earth- because for him, she is.

.

* * *

.

Donna sits on one end of the living room couch drinking hot chocolate with Eric on the other end doing the same.

.

"It's too quiet in here." Eric gripes, feeling a bit unsettled.

.

She looks up at the clock on the VCR and scratches her head. "Have you seen or heard from Jackie all day?" she asks, knowing the little brunette to be the main source of background noise in the apartment.

.

He purses his lips as he tries to recall. "I know she and Hyde went out to a diner for breakfast and then planned to go shopping from there, but I haven't heard from either of them since they left."

.

Donna and Eric simultaneously have an epiphany.

.

"Oh good God, Donna. Please tell me I'm crazy for thinking what I'm thinking" he begs, fearfully.

.

She looks at him sympathetically and sighs. "Did you really expect otherwise? I mean, he was probably taking his shirt off every five minutes in that dressing room and flexing, and we both know Jackie has no self-control when shopping is involved."

.

He grimaces. "What? So you really think Hyde was like 'Hey doll, This little orphan boy doesn't have anybody to pick his clothes out for him' (flex flex)" Eric says, mimicking Hyde's voice and body language.

.

"Pretty much" she agrees. "and then Jackie was probably like 'Oh my god! You want me to make you less scruffy? You love me'!" she mocks Jackie's Valley Girl twang and demeanor. "If they act anything like they did a few months ago, we're not going to see them for days and Shun Lee Palace will be completely out of shrimp lo-mein."

.

"God, she's like some twisted, human version of flypaper" he jokes.

.

"Yeah, and Hyde is a giant 'Spanish Fly'" she adds on.

.

They laugh together easily, forgetting for a moment the large schism that currently exists between them. Eventually, the laughter dies down and they are met with pregnant silence.

.

Donna looks down at her hands and wrings them gently. "Why is it always so hard for us to talk to each other about real stuff when it's so easy for us to talk like this?" she wonders.

.

Eric runs a hand through his hair. "I don't know. Maybe I'm afraid that if I tell you how I feel about something big and you don't feel the same way, you'll break it off with me?"

.

"But we end up broken up either way, so what's the point of not being honest then?" she asks.

.

"I don't want to hurt you, and also...frankly, you scare me sometimes" he admits.

.

"I know I can hit harder than you Forman, but you don't have to be scared of me" she says, rolling her eyes.

.

He levels his index finger at her and laughs. "Cute, but you know what I mean. I never know how you're going to react to something. You're so completely unpredictable and I'm just...well, I guess I'm always worried I'll say the wrong thing."

.

Her face softens. "Eric, you almost always say the wrong thing but I always get over it 's kind of what you're known for" She teases before she goes back to wringing her hands. "I know I'm unpredictable, depending on my mood. Sometimes, I scare myself too, if it makes you feel any better. I know I'm not always the most rational individual." She looks meaningfully into his green eyes, which seem paler today than usual to her.

.

"How's the therapy?" he questions. "Are you still going?"

.

She shifts in her seat. "I am. I mean, I'm studying psychotherapy and we have to see a therapist as part of the program. It helps sometimes, but at other times...not."

.

Eric clears his throat. "Maybe, um...well, do you want me to go with you?" he offers, praying she'll say yes.

.

Donna bites her lip as she tries to decide whether or not this is a good idea. "I don't know. Maybe you could see your own therapist first - I can get you one at school - and if that goes well, we can try going together." she looks up at him demurely.

.

Her ex-boyfriend softly smiles and scoots over a few feet on the couch to bring himself closer to her. "Does this mean...?"

.

She shakes her head. "No Eric. We're just friends right now."

.

His expressions falls with his chances of getting another shot with her. Donna's words rotate in his head, taunting him like a schoolyard bully – until it hits him what she really meant and sly smile creeps across his features. He narrows his eyes in her direction and gives her a look that could melt glass. "You said 'right now'."

.

Donna's mouth falls open as she blushes, red splotches starting to appear all over her chest.

.

**A/N – What did you think? Was the proposal too cheesy? Those who've been following my fics know I'm allergic to overly sappy scenes, particularly where Hyde is concerned. But hey, he's got to propose some time, so let me know if it seemed in character to you. (I know I'm like a broken record but...) Please review! Guest reviews welcome!**


	27. Chapter 27

**One more to go after this! This chapter is sadly rated T, which means sMut will be on hold until the D/E reunion in #28. This is another long chapter, so make sure you visit the rest room beforehand :)**

**.**

**CHAPTER 27**

.

Hyde has Jackie pinned to the door frame outside of her apartment. They've been intending on opening the door for the past ten minutes, but a combination of nerves and horniness have been keeping them both at bay.

.

Jackie reaches for the lock, keys in hand, as Hyde presses firmly against her causing her to suddenly drop them to the floor with a loud clatter. "Shit" she breathes as he descends onto her neck, bombarding the length of her throat with gentle kisses as he slams her into the front door.

.

"Ooph" she jokes. "Seriously though baby, the keys." she warns as she reaches down to retrieve them.

.

"Get them later" he growls into the bend of her neck, sending a shiver through her body. His hands wind their way into her chestnut locks and pull her head back for better access. Just as a small moan escapes Jackie's lips, the door clicks open and the pair of them tumble into the apartment as dazed as they are busted.

.

Donna, amused and enjoying their discomfort, faces the furtive couple with both hands on her hips. "Huh! There you are! We were just wondering what you two had gotten up to today."

.

Jackie straightens her blouse and delicately tucks an errant curl behind her ear. "Um...what's up?"

.

The redhead smiles smugly and shuts the door behind her friend. "I can tell you one thing that's up" she teases as she glances at the bulge in Hyde's jeans.

.

Embarrassed, he coughs and shifts to face another direction.

.

Eric, also amused yet simultaneously disgusted by their public display of affection, pulls a face. "I mean...seriously man? Again?"

.

Hyde clears his throat and looks bashfully at his shoes while praying for the floor to open up and swallow him whole.

.

Jackie's eyes flash with fury. "What exactly do you mean by that, dorkus?"

.

Donna turn to face him. "Yeah, dorkus. What exactly do you mean by that?" she smiles sadistically.

.

He throws his hands up in the air in surrender. "I'm only saying what everybody is thinking."

.

The tiny brunette marches over to the couch and stares down at her old friend. "And what is _that_, Eric Forman? I mean, what do you care about what we do anyway?" she pouts.

.

He avoids her eyes. "I just mean, just that, you know it's obvious you two alley cats are at it again, and maybe I'm just not looking forward to the inevitable meltdown that usually accompanies one of your warmhearted reunions."

.

Jackie's eyes soften. "Do you really mean that, Eric?"

.

He meets her gaze. "Which part?"

.

"The inevitable meltdown" she nearly whispers as tears threaten to pool in her eyes.

.

Eric's stomach drops as he realizes he's really bruised her feelings. He meant every word he said, but as usual, his delivery left a lot to be desired. He reaches out his hand to comfort her. "Jackie.."

.

Hyde's jaw tightens as he notices Jackie's agitated state. He walks across the room, places his hands on her hips and turns her body to face him. Pulling his sunglasses from his face, he dips his head down to meet her eyes. "Come on, babydoll. Don't listen to what that scarecrow is yapping about." He says softly as he runs a thumb down the side of her jaw and tips her chin up to force eye contact. "You know how it's going to end this time, right?" he smiles, his blue eyes sparkling with intensity.

.

She swallows hard as a blush creeps across her face and she nods. "You're going to marry me" she answers in an uncertain voice.

.

Donna's jaw drops and she looks to her ex for confirmation that she didn't imagine this and is met with a similar look of confusion.

.

Hyde runs his thumb across the same pair of lips he's claimed over a thousand times today and grins before kissing her. "That's right. We're getting married."

.

"What?!" Eric and Donna both exclaim at the same time.

.

"You're marrying her? You're getting married to_ Jackie_?" the skinny man shakes his head in disbelief.

.

Hyde's eyes narrow as he glares at his sometimes brother. "You got a problem with it?"

.

He shakes his head vigorously. "No. No. Of course I don't. It just seems kind of sudden, no?" he asks nervously.

.

"If one can call five years of on and off dating sudden." Donna cracks. "Congratulations, you guys" she says with genuine warmth before embracing each of them with one of her long arms. "I really am happy you finally worked out your differences."

.

"Have they, though?" Eric wonders aloud, head cocked to the side. "_Have _they?"

.

"You're skating on thin ice, Forman" Hyde warns.

.

Jackie waves a hand in the air. "No, it's okay. Let him say what he wants. It's not like other people won't be thinking the same thing, Steven" she explains.

.

"I don't give a fuck what anybody thinks. We're doing this." he says decisively.

.

Donna's eyebrows raise, completely impressed with her friend's complete turnaround. "Wow Hyde. I never thought I'd see you drop the Zen. It looks good on you."

.

He scowls at her and squares his shoulders. "I'm Zen" he points his thumb to his chest. "But there's always a time and a place to kick ass."

.

"You tell 'em, Puddin' Pop!" Jackie wraps her arms around his waist and buries her face in his chest, turning subtly to the side to mouth 'OMG' to Donna, who struggles to hide her smirk.

.

He winces. "I thought we agreed that name wasn't for public consumption, Jackie."

.

She tips her head up and smiles coquettishly. "I forgot?"

.

"No biggie". He shrugs and kisses her soundly.

.

Eric balks. "Did she, like, drug you or something?"

.

Hyde leans over and frogs his friend in the arm hard. "Say another word about it man and you'll be wearing both of your arms in a sling."

.

He rubs his wounded shoulder and hisses "Mazel tov" through clenches teeth.

.

Donna frowns at her ex's antics. "I'm gonna get the champagne...or more accurately, the beer served in champagne glasses" she announces as she walks toward the kitchen.

.

"So, when's the big day?" Eric questions. "What? Don't tell me Hyde didn't set a date!" he places a hand over his chest in faux-shock.

.

"You know, Steven and I were just too darn busy 'proving our love' to each other all day to come up with one" she gloats. "In fact, I think he must've proved my brains out at least four times this afternoon" she sighs melodramatically. "What were you and Donna up to today?"

.

Hyde looks admiringly over at his little spitfire and crosses his arms over his chest. "Yeah Forman, play a little Dungeons and Dragons with Big Red while we were out?"

.

"You know Jackie, just because he puts a ring on your finger doesn't mean you're going to magically become right for each other. Magic rings only exist in Middle Earth and we are _not_ Hobbits, even if you are as tiny as one" he taunts. "Hyde may say the right things to you today, but what happens next time his paranoia kicks in and he thinks you're having an affair and then bangs the meter maid or your housekeeper?" he implores, desperately wanting to get through to her. "You know I'm right." he insists quietly.

.

An empty feeling swells inside of her body, robbing her brain of oxygen. "When did get to be such a bitter asshole?" Jackie wonders as she storms off into her bedroom and nearly slams the door off it's hinges behind her.

.

Hyde glowers in Eric's direction and holds his finger out accusingly. "You're a dead man, Forman." he warns in a low growl before taking off after his girlfriend to check on her.

.

Eric falls dejectedly to the couch and folds his fingers around his head.

.

* * *

.

Donna flounces into the living room carrying four champagne glasses and a couple of beer bottles in her large hands, just in time to catch the tail-end of the confrontation between the boys. She looks around at the aftermath and flattens her mouth into a sharp line. "What did you do?"

.

"Apparently I'm the only one who has long term memory in this apartment" Eric grumbles without looking up.

.

She shakes her head and sets the glasses and beer down on the coffee table. "Let me ask you something. Do you think people can change?"

.

He looks up at her with bloodshot eyes. "I honestly don't know anymore."

.

She nods and sits down rigidly next to him on the couch. "Well, I do. It's not easy, I know, but it is possible."

.

"Why? You think Hyde has changed?" he snorts.

.

She places a hand on Eric's knee, which accomplishes it's intended objective of getting him out of his own head. "I do. I mean, he stuck up for her. Has he ever done that before?"

.

Eric shrugs. "Big deal."

.

"He obviously swallowed his pride and told her how he feels about her. He's never done that before for a girl either." she notes while popping the top off of one bottle of beer with a keychain before taking a much needed sip.

.

"Guys will say anything to get laid, Donna. You know that." he says dismissively.

.

She rolls her eyes and swivels to face him fully. "Eric, he freaking proposed to her. Hyde _wants_ to get married."

.

He shakes his hands . "I have no rational explanation for that one."

.

"I do. How about, he's in love with her? I mean, are you that blind? You can't see how totally head over heels he is for her?" she asks incredulously.

.

He grabs a beer and pops the top off using the edge of the table. "I just don't want to see her get hurt again. You weren't there in Tampico. You didn't see what he did to her."

.

She takes a swig of her beer and rolls the cold bottle between her hands, letting the condensation wet her palms entirely. "One of the really great things about Jackie is that she never stops believing in people. Most people get knocked down and they're jaded for life. I mean, look at Hyde. He's the most jaded guy we know."

.

Eric stares thoughtfully at his drink. "I don't know, he didn't seem too jaded to me just now. In fact, he seemed pretty damn euphoric."

.

Donna preens triumphantly. "Exactly. If Jackie can reduce the most jaded guy we know to a marshmallow, doesn't that prove they're right for one another?"

.

"Okay, but she makes herself so vulnerable. Who's gonna look out for her?" he asks, running his hands through his hair.

.

"Uh...Hyde? He looked like he was about to tear your throat out just now for upsetting her. You don't think he wants to protect her?" she asks.

.

Eric sighs. "I guess, but who is going to protect her from him?"

.

"She keeps going back to him for a reason, Eric." Donna explains.

.

"Temporary insanity?" he smiles.

.

The redhead smacks his arm. "No, you dillhole. She's in love with him, despite everything. I think it's hard for you to understand, because you haven't seen them together like I have. I was the same way before I 'got' their weird relationship. I mean, I actually told him he was better off with Samantha!"

.

"Great advice" Eric winks, struggling to keep a straight face.

.

She smacks his arm again. "Okay, but you understand they're never going to leave each other alone, right? They're just going to keep finding their way back to each other like lemmings."

.

"I thought lemmings threw themselves off of cliffs?" he questions, curiously.

.

Donna shakes her head. "It's a myth." She slides her bottle onto the table and rests both hands on Eric's knees, causing heat to build and spread throughout the region. "Now, do you think you can let our friends be happy?"

.

He smiles and looks up at her. "I can try." he tells her earnestly.

.

She matches his smiles and tilts her head. "Do you think you can try to let us be happy as well?"

.

A forlorn expression overtakes his face. "You have no idea how badly I want that, Donna. No idea."

.

She looks down where their bodies are joined and tightens her grip. "I have an idea. Sometimes I think we get in our own way."

.

"Yeah" he inhales and exhales hard. "None of this other stuff is important, you know. And I mean, if those two nutjobs can get their acts together" he says, pointing in the direction of Jackie's bedroom, "we should definitely be able to fix this." he motions between them.

.

She nods, her green eyes now locked with his. "I'd like that."

.

"I've been around the globe now and seen a lot of things, but the most beautiful thing I've ever seen was only 20 steps from my front door" he confesses. "Go figure."

.

She rolls her eyes yet blushes despite herself.

.

"I mean it, Donna. Maybe I'm a lemming too?" Eric hesitantly brings his hands to the sides of her head and glides his eager fingertips over her silky red locks, careful not to jostle her with too much pressure, lest he wake up and discover this has all been a cruel dream.

.

She leans into his caress and closes her eyes, imagining their first romantic night together on the hood of the Vista Cruiser. Spontaneously, she lunges forward and pecks him on the lips.

.

"What was that for?" he asks nervously.

.

She shrugs. "I just wanted to see what it was like".

.

He smirks. "What was it like?"

.

"You were there" she smiles back.

.

"I wasn't ready. I would have done things a little differently had I been prepared. You know, maybe something like this." He cups her face and brings her closer, gently tickling her soft lips with his own.

.

Donna's hands float up his torso and work their way up to the back of his head. She pulls him toward her and deepens the kiss between them, parting her lips to allow his tongue to dip inside of her mouth.

.

* * *

.

On her bed, Jackie sits facing Hyde on his lap, her legs wrapped snugly around his waist. Their foreheads pressed together, she sighs deeply.

.

"You're tired" he decides.

.

"So are you" she laughs.

.

"Do you want to take a nap?" he offers.

.

"I'm not ready for today to end yet" she admits.

.

He smiles genuinely. "Tomorrow will be just as good, babe, I promise." he says as one hand toys with a chocolate ringlet.

.

"Nope. Impossible. Nothing can top today." she declares happily.

.

"What about our wedding day?" he challenges, knowing how deep her sentimentality runs.

.

"Okay, you got me" she giggles. "But that's a long way away, so I want to enjoy today" she tells him as she runs her hands up and down his broad chest, enjoying her exploration of the contours of his body.

.

"It doesn't have to be. In fact, I'd rather just get it over with if it's all the same to you" he tells her.

.

"Stop. You're killing me with romance" she cries in monotone.

.

"Somebody's got a smart mouth" He grabs her sides to tickle her and they collapse backwards laughing, with Hyde now straddling Jackie on the bed.

.

She pushes the hair out of her face and looks at him ambivalently. "You really just want to get it over with?"

.

He leans forward and kisses her forehead. "Nah. I really just want to do it before I fuck things up again and you realize what a giant mistake you're making."

.

She raises an eyebrow. "You married another woman. If that didn't fuck things up between us, I think it's safe to say there's nothing you can do to drive me away. Clearly, I am a lost cause when it comes to you."

.

Hyde lies down next to her and strokes her face. "Jackie..."

.

She shakes her head and refuses to meet his gaze. "You don't have to say it Steven. I know."

.

He traces the line of her jaw with his thumb up toward her ear and rubs the pad back and forth over the tight joint. He can tell she's tense by the way her mouth is set and the distant look in her eyes. She may think she's fooling him, but he's had hours to study this woman over the years and he can tell when she's holding something in.

.

"Forman doesn't know what he's talking about" Hyde blurts out angrily. "And I owe him a beating for what he said to you."

.

"Please don't" she begs. "In his twisted, little peabrain he just thought he was protecting me."

.

"From me?" he asks in disbelief.

.

She shrugs as she plays with the fingers on one of his hands.

.

"I know there's nothing I can say to put your mind at ease, but I -" he clears his throat. "I, you know...love you. I've never felt this way about anybody but you." he confesses as he tilts his head to catch her reaction.

.

Jackie kisses his hand and nods solemnly. "I know. But what if he's right? What if I get whiny and you get all paranoid and we implode like we always do?"

.

"We won't let that happen. Though in all fairness, you probably will get whiny." he cracks, earning him a flicked earlobe.

.

"I'm just scared, Steven." she admits quietly, pressing his hand to her chest.

.

"Yeah. I mean, I am too, I guess. But it's scarier thinking about being without each other, right? I mean, it wasn't that much fun for me." he shifts uncomfortably on the bed as his eyes drift longingly toward the sunglasses sitting on Jackie's night table. "I keep thinking about when I got shot, you know. The hospital didn't have any family to call. And you were alone on Christmas too. You shouldn't be alone anymore, you should be with me." he asserts.

.

One of her hands instinctively touches his bullet wound gingerly. "We're both alone, so we may as well be alone together?" she smirks, thinking of the exact suggestion she made years ago when he thought of her as nothing more than a pest.

.

He realizes he's going to have to say something even mushier and more reassuring if he's going to snap her out of this. "I...we should probably go out and buy a ring today, huh?"

.

Life returns to her eyes and she turns her head to face him. "You really do want to marry me."

.

"I knew you'd listen once I mentioned jewelry." he tweaks her nose. Though not as hard as he thought it would be, it's still not the easiest thing in the world for him to have these discussions. "Let's get hitched on Saturday".

.

Jackie's eyes nearly fall out of her head with shock. "_This_ Saturday?"

.

He shrugs. "No time like the present."

.

"But I don't have a dress! Or shoes! Or anything else a bride needs" she complains, intense panic starting to seep it's way into her bones.

.

"You've got a groom. That's all a bride needs, Jackie." he rolls his eyes, realizing too late that he just set off a maelstrom.

.

She scowls and starts to get off the bed. "Oh, who do you think you're talking to?!"

.

Hyde grabs her and wrestles her back down. "Not so fast! You broke your promise to me."

.

Her brow furrows. "What promise?"

.

"I believe you mentioned something about having these little powwows in the buff" he grins. "You're wearing far too many things."

.

"Oh" she says, biting her bottom lip.

.

"I held up my end of the bargain, didn't I?" he challenges.

.

She smiles at him with only her eyes. "True." she acquiesces, reclining in front of him like a decorated present, waiting to be unwrapped on Christmas morning.

.

Hyde lazily sheds Jackie's shirt, taking his time to leave a kiss on her bare skin in the wake of each button he unfastens.

.

"Steven" she whispers hesitantly, voice fraught with frustration.

.

He looks up at her from her navel.

.

She flushes hot with embarrassment. "I don't think I can."

.

"Why not?" he asks. "Too busy shopping for a dress?"

.

"I'm sore" she confesses before burying her face in her hands, mortified beyond belief.

.

He grins, pleased with himself for wearing her out, and pulls her hands down from her face. "We don't have to do that. There are other things..." he promises seductively as he slowly unzips the side of her skirt.

.

* * *

.

Fez and Angie walk barge through the front door laughing, unwittingly interrupting Donna and Eric's private moment.

.

"Hey guys!" Angie sings as she happily swans into the apartment.

.

"Angie" Eric nods tersely, annoyed at the interruption, just as he was making headway.

.

"Ooh, beer!" Fez gravitates toward the table and grabs two of them then pops the tops off with the opener. "Thirsty?" he asks Angie, offering her a bottle.

.

"Don't mind if I do" she says, accepting the bottle with an outstretched hand. Her eyes are drawn to the table below them and her brows knit. "Why do you guys have champagne glasses out? Run out of normal ones?"

.

Eric and Donna exchange a clandestine look.

.

"You might want to talk to Hyde." Donna suggests.

.

Angie strokes her chin the same way her brother does when he's thinking. "Is he here?"

.

Donna cocks her head toward Jackie's bedroom.

.

"Oh..." she stifles a smile. "Guess their day of shopping went well."

.

"That's an understatement" Eric says before swigging his beer.

.

* * *

.

Just as Hyde is about to slip off Jackie's underwear, he hears his sister's voice in the other room and exhales angrily before collapsing face first onto his girlfriend's pelvis.

.

She runs her hands through his hair and scratches his scalp affectionately. "Gotta face the music sometime."

.

He frowns, then places a kiss on Jackie's aching core through her underwear and slowly brings her skirt back over her hips. "To be continued."

.

* * *

.

The bedroom door opens and Jackie and Hyde emerge from the room holding hands.

.

Eric gives them both a look of contrition, stands up and offers a firm hand to Hyde. "Congratulations, man. I'm sorry I acted like an asshole before."

.

Hyde frowns. "Yeah, you did."

.

Jackie looks at him pleadingly and he relents.

.

"But we're cool, I guess." he nods and shakes his friend's hand unenthusiastically.

.

Fez looks back and forth between his two buddies and wrinkles his forehead. "What are we congratulating Hyde for? Did he beat another drug possession charge?"

.

Angie giggles and grabs Fez's arm for support.

.

"No man. I'm getting married." he announces nonchalantly, as if he just told them he bought a pair of new shoes.

.

Angie's eyes grow wide. "I'm sorry—what?"

.

"Did you get somebody pregnant?" Fez inquires honestly.

.

Eric laughs. "Burn."

.

Hyde blanches. "No, I didn't get somebody pregnant."

.

"You did kind of say once that would be the only way you'd get married." Donna pipes in to defend her foreign friend.

.

Fez pulls a long red twizzler from his pocket and takes a bite. "Who's the 'lucky' stripper?" he asks, using air quotes.

.

"Burn!" Donna and Eric both laugh this time. "Sorry Hyde, that was a good burn." Donna shrugs apologetically.

.

Jackie's face crumples and she runs off to her room again.

.

Hyde launches his fist into Fez's shoulder hard. "Ow!" the brown-skinned man cries out in pain. "What was that for?"

.

"Are you fucking kidding me? You had to mention strippers, dude? It just took me 20 minutes to coax her out of the room after Forman mentioned Middle Earth and a meter maid. You guys are killing me." he tosses Eric's fedora across the room and collapses into the nearby armchair and sulks. "This isn't a fucking joke, this is my life." he looks up at them with a crestfallen expression. "If she walks out on me again because of this..." he shakes his head and rubs the heel of his palm against his forehead roughly.

.

"I'll go talk to her" Donna offers.

.

Eric shakes his head. "No, I should go" he decides and takes off in the direction of Jackie's room without waiting for a response.

.

* * *

.

Jackie is lying on her bed listening to the radio. The lights are dim and the air thick with marijuana smoke as she stares as if catatonic at the ceiling and smokes. The song "Only the Lonely" by The Motels comes through the speakers. She softly sings along to the music.

.

_**We walked the loneliest mile**__**  
**__**We smiled without any style**__**  
**__**We kiss altogether wrong**__**  
**__**No intention**_

.

Eric raps on the door lightly and then lets himself inside. He chews the inside of his cheek anxiously as he observes the fragile condition his friend is in.

.

_**We lied about each others drinks**__**  
**__**We lived without each other thinkin'**__**  
**__**What anyone would do**__**  
**__**Without me and you**_

.

He perches on the edge of her bed and takes the joint from her fingers. "What are you doing?"

.

"That's a very good question, dorkus." she responds before snatching the joint back from him.

.

Eric prods Jackie to move over and he lies down next to her on the bed. She passes the joint to him and he takes a drag. "You know, I've been told I say the wrong thing almost 100% of the time."

.

She laughs. "Not 100% of the time. Maybe just 95%" she guesses.

.

"Well, I was wrong before, about what I said earlier." he explains, passing the joint back to Jackie.

.

_**It's like I told you**__**  
**__**Only the lonely can play**__**  
**__**So hold on here we go**__**  
**__**Hold on to nothin' we know**__**  
**__**I feel so lonely way up here**_

.

"What if you're not wrong, Eric? What if I'm just some big, deluded moron who's setting herself up for major disappointment. I mean, just because I want it to work out, doesn't mean that it will," she tells him tearfully. "He's hurt me so many times."

.

He nods. "True. He's also made you happy though, right?" he asks.

.

She rests the back of her hand across her forehead and sighs. "I love him so much I sometimes question my own sanity."

.

"That makes two of us." He chuckles before getting hip-checked in retaliation. "Ow."

.

She stubs out the joint in the ashtray on the night table behind her and turns on her side to look at her friend. "You'd tell me if I were making a mistake, right?"

.

_**You mention the time we were together**__**  
**__**So long ago, well I don't remember**__**  
**__**All I know is that it makes me feel good now**_

.

Eric turns to face her. "You're not making a mistake. He may screw up a lot, but Hyde is a decent person deep down and he loves you. I mean, when you ran out of the room like that he looked like we had kidnapped his dog."

.

Jackie wrinkles her nose. "Are you calling me a dog, Eric?"

.

"What? No!" he titters nervously. "Guess that last comment falls under the 95%?" he cups her face between his hands. "I'm telling you that you will regret it if you don't grab this chance. Take it from somebody who chickened out when he had the chance and ended up lost at sea."

.

A slow smile spreads across her face. "That wasn't your last chance, Eric." she says knowingly.

.

His breath hitches. "She said something to you?"

.

She shakes her head. "She didn't have to. We hobbits just know these things. We have big robot brains."

.

Eric wraps his arms around Jackie's neck and puts her in a loose headlock. "Oh Padawan. When will you learn? Hobbits are fantasy, not sci-fi!"

.

_**It's like I told you**__**  
**__**Only the lonely can play**__**  
**__**Only the lonely**__**  
**__**Only the lonely can play**_

.

**A/N – Not much happened in this chapter, but I felt like there were a lot of questions that needed to be answered between everybody. I also wanted to make sure to bring the story back around to Jackie and Eric's friendship, since this is how the fic really began. I don't think there will be more than one (or two at the most) more chapters after this, so we're in the home stretch. Look for Kelso in the next one.**

**.**

**What did you think? I look forward to your reviews and please consider marking this fic as a favorite if you like it.**


	28. Chapter 28

**Oh, you guys know I love Eric! I know he came off as kind of jerky in the last chapter, but he is kind of judgmental in the series as well when he thinks something is unjust - he's very principled and stubborn. Anyway, his arc of the story is him coming to terms with being an adult and forgiving himself and other people for not being perfect. **

**.**

**Also, I had to break the last chapter into two because it was getting too long. You'll probably get the other one very soon, so look for it.**

**.**

**Oh yeah, and sMut Ahoy! This chapter is rated M for sexytimes, which occur in the last scene. **

**PS—The sMut in this chapter is dedicated to tophergirl, who has waited patiently for some Eric on Donna action.**

**.**

**CHAPTER 28**

.

Brooke adjusts the tiara on Jackie's head and narrows her eyes. "When you say Steven, we're still talking about Steven _Hyde_, right?"

.

"Well I'm not marrying Steven Tyler. Although..." she taps her finger against her lips as she imagines what that might be like, but then remembers the rear view she caught of Steven screwing her against the wall of the dressing room and decides she has the better deal.

.

"I just—I mean, I'm wondering what..." Brooke leans in, stammering in her small friend's ear. "What kind of, um, freaky things have you promised to do to him in bed in order to get him to agree to this little theme wedding?"

.

Jackie throws her head back and laughs. "I didn't have to promise to do anything! We made a deal. He wanted to get married in a week and he chose this location, so in exchange he's agreed to let me plan the entire ceremony however I want" she smiles deviously.

.

The auburn-haired beauty shakes her head. "I hope for your sake he doesn't run screaming when he sees when you have in store for him."

.

"He won't." she says assertively. "It's not_ that _bad. Of course, I may have to make it up to him by finally doing that thing he's always asking for, but I was kind of planning on doing it on our wedding night anyway" she whispers behind her hand.

.

The bride nervously twists her engagement ring as she bends to look under the bed. "I can only find one of my shoes, Brooke." she laments before curling up on the mattress with her knees tucked up into her body.

.

As her ex-boyfriend's wife searches under the bed for her missing shoe, Jackie accidentally catches her ring on one of her stockings, causing a small run as she tries to safely dislodge it. "Shit!" she cries and attempts to smooth it out, only making the run deeper.

.

Jackie worries her bottom lip aggressively and wonders if this is a sign from God that she's making a big mistake. "Forget the shoes" the little imp decides before ripping off her stockings and watching them float to the ground. "I'll go barefoot."

.

* * *

.

Hyde, Eric, Kelso and Fez sit at the Blackjack table at The Sands Casino in Atlantic City.

.

"This is so much better than hitting up a strip club" Eric gloats, rhythmically fingering the growing pile of chips collecting in front of him.

.

"Speak for yourself" groans Fez as he folds his fourth hand in a row. "I think I'm out" he sighs as he reaches into his pocket to fish out any remaining chips. "Yep, out. At least at a strip club they don't ever run out of boobs."

.

Eric tosses a $20 chip in front of the foreigner. "How about one more hand on me?"

.

"Hear that Fez? Forman wants you to put your hand on him" Hyde chortles, sending Kelso into a drunken giggle fit so fierce he eventually falls off his own chair.

.

Eric leans past the groom-to-be and snatches his wasted friend's 7&7 drink away. "You're cut off, Kelso" he announces, looking to the others to back him up.

.

Michael pouts and crosses his arms over his chest petulantly. "I'm just gonna head to the strip club with Fez, then. They won't cut me off there."

.

"About an hour ago you got so sloppy you were screaming 'hit me' at the waitress every time you wanted another drink. Pretty sure that might get you cut off at casa de boobs too." he snipes defensively.

.

"Or he could find himself gagged and bound in the champagne room while a stripper named Mistress Ursula slaps him with a wet towel." Hyde snorts as he taps the table to get the dealer to hand him another card.

.

Fez's ears perk up. "They do that here?"

.

"You guys suuuuck!" the tall man shouts defiantly while pulling himself off the ground.

.

"Whatever." Hyde responds as he folds his hand. "Dammit! This just isn't my lucky day." he frowns.

.

"Don't let Jackie hear you saying that" Eric warns under his breath.

.

The brown-skinned pauper lifts his charity chip off of the felt table and holds it between his fingers. "As much as I'd like to stay here and keep losing, I think my time would be better spent looking at boobs." he examines the plastic circle quizzically. "Do you think the cashier can break this $20 chip into 20 $1 chips?"

.

Eric continues to be engrossed in stacking and unstacking his chips. "Yeah, um, I'm pretty sure strippers don't accept chips as currency, man" he says as he pretends to drop a chip into a woman's G-string, letting the chit tumble loudly onto his plastic pile. "That would make tipping a little noisy. You might want to check with the expert though" he suggests, motioning with his thumb to the man sitting next to him.

.

"Shut the fuck up, Forman" Hyde growls.

.

"Are you coming?" Fez asks them as he and Kelso stand to leave.

.

"No way man. I already have a limp, I don't need Jackie putting me in a wheelchair." he grouses.

.

Kelso mimes the cracking of a whip, complete with loud sound effect and walks off without a goodbye.

.

Fez leans over and whispers "burn" in Hyde's ear before taking off after his friend.

.

The zenmaster slides his sunglasses halfway down his nose at his best friend. "You wanna get a shot in as well?"

.

Eric shakes his head decisively. "Nope. I'm in the same boat. If there's even a remote chance of me seeing real tits tonight up close, I'm sure as hell not going to ruin it by paying to see a bunch of fake ones from several feet away."

.

"How's that going?" he asks as he signals to the dealer to layout another hand.

.

"I've kissed her twice this week and she let my hand graze her ass for three seconds without slapping it away. I guess that's progress." he shrugs as he collects his winnings from yet another stellar play.

.

"Keep at it, she'll cave eventually. I mean, if I can get Jackie to agree to marry me after all of the stupid crap that I've done, you're golden." he opines as he doubles down.

.

"Yeah, I'm not so sure about that. I mean, Donna is not as forgiving as Jackie, and my particular brand of...ahem, charm, isn't necessarily as persuasive as what you've got goin' on" he laments, gesturing to his buddy's relaxed mein.

.

Hyde smirks. "What do I have _goin' on_, Forman?"

.

"You know" he sulks jealously. "You're, you know, cool. I guess some women respond to that" he sniffs.

.

"Good thing Donna's not one of them." Hyde laughs. "Look man, I wouldn't worry about not being 'cool' enough to get her back, because she's clearly into the whole awkward, twitchy thing you're rocking. If you try to do anything new it'll just end in disaster. Let me just remind you of that time you tried to coin the nickname 'hot stuff' for Big Red and you accidentally said it to the chick working the concession stand and D left your ass in the middle of the movie theater."

.

"The popcorn was literally 'hot stuff'! What else was I supposed to say?" he asks indignantly.

.

"Work with what you have, Forman. No use going against the grain. Take it from a guy with an afro." he advises as he gingerly pats his hair.

.

Eric nods reluctantly. "I just wish I could 'wow' her in some way. You know, show her how much she means to me."

.

Hyde leans over and eyes his lanky friend's winnings. "Sure as hell looks like you can afford to wow her. What do you have there—20 grand?"

.

The sandy-haired man gets lost in thought until an epiphany hits him, bringing him excitedly to his feet.

.

"_Not_ an engagement ring, man. Anything but that." his best friend warns.

.

Eric runs his hands through his hair and casually sinks back into his seat, then rises almost immediately back up. "I've gotta go do something." he says, quickly shoveling all of his chips into his pockets before taking off like he's catching the last chopper out of 'Nam.

.

* * *

.

"Knock knock" Donna announces as she pushes open the door to Jackie's room, only to be greeted with a thick cloud of smoke.

.

The redhead immediately starts coughing and waving her hand in front of her face. "I brought some snacks. Judging by your activities, I'm guessing I'm right on time." She shakes a bag of food in the air.

.

Brooke rushes over and snatches the paper bag from her hands. "Oh thank God. You must've read my mind, I'm starving!" she screams as she starts shoving handfuls of french fries into her mouth. "Thank you" she mumbles through her half-chewed food.

.

Jackie wrinkles her nose. "Why are you trying to make me fat right before I get married?" she complains.

.

The taller girl sighs and flops onto the bed. "First of all, why would I want you to be fat? And second of all, you can't get fat in one day."

.

The little bride raises an eyebrow at her friend and looks her up and down critically. "Can't you, Donna?"

.

Donna rolls her eyes and continues. "You're going to faint before you make it down the aisle if you keep this up."

.

Jackie tries to reach for the bag of food, but Brooke holds it close to her chest. "Damn Jackie! I'm not finished yet!" she snaps as she continues her binge.

.

"Guess it's true what they say about married couples starting to act like each other. Brooke and Kelso are melding into one beautiful, stoned puppy dog" the tomboy chuckles.

.

"Do you think in a year I'll be wearing sunglasses indoors and only smiling when somebody falls down or I make fun of them?" the pixie wonders aloud.

.

Donna reaches into her handbag and produces a red apple, which she tosses in the direction of her tiny friend. "You already do that second thing. I'm convinced that's what holds you and Hyde together."

.

The phone rings and Brooke answers it. "Hello?" After listening in silence for a minute, she mumbles "Again? Please say you're kidding, Fez. Fine, I'll bring him a new pair of pants." and slams the receiver down. "Michael got himself into a little trouble in the lobby" she huffs as she slides into her shoes and shuffles quickly across the hotel suite. "I'll be back" she calls over her shoulder before letting the door close behind her.

.

Jackie admires her reflection in the shiny apple and smiles. "I can't believe this is actually happening" she confides. "Between you and me, I really never thought it would."

.

"That really surprises me" Donna comments, pulling her legs up to mirror her friend's. "You're the eternal optimist. You really didn't think you and Hyde would make your way back to each other?"

.

She shakes her head slowly and lays it against her old roommate's firm shoulders. "We're not like you and Eric. You guys just make sense. Nothing about Steven and me as a couple makes sense, but I suppose we barely make sense separately either, so..." she laughs.

.

"I think you're underselling yourselves, Jackie. I mean, none of us gets the connection you two have, it's a little intense and slightly disconcerting in it's randomness, but I think you're both actually quite lost when you're apart. Without you, Hyde would probably resort to stockpiling rice and living in a bunker to avoid being detected by the giant robots that control our society" Donna speculates as she runs her finger over the old tan line from where her various engagement rings once rested. "Maybe you two make more sense than you think."

.

The brunette beauty notices her friend's gesture and slips her small hand into her friend's larger one. "I know more than anybody about wanting to make a guy suffer for his sins, but you're only hurting yourself by not forgiving him."

.

"I'm afraid if I do, he'll just leave me again and I'll feel bad. I'm sick of feeling bad, you know?" she exhales, gripping Jackie's hand tightly to prevent herself from crying.

.

In her periphery, Donna notices a pair of mismatched eyes looking up at her with empathy. "Seems like you're feeling pretty bad now though anyway."

.

The redhead peers down at her friend and laughs, water pooling in her catlike eyes. "You put a ring on a girl and all of a sudden she thinks she's Dear Abby."

.

Jackie gently shoulder checks her maid of honor. "There's still an hour before the ceremony."

.

She nods but remains still.

.

Irritated by her lack of initiative, Jackie hops off the bed and pushes her friend's back with all her energy. "Come on, you sad Lumberjack! I don't have the body mass to get your big ol' potato sack off this bed, so you either stand up now or I will do something so annoying you'll have no choice but to run screaming from this room and into the dorkus's spindly arms. You know I'm capable!"

.

The tall woman slides off the bed and glowers at her. "Take three bites of that apple and I'll leave." she offers.

.

Jackie eagerly sinks her teeth into the apple three times in a row without chewing. "Now go!" she struggles to mumble through a full mouth as she points to the door.

.

Donna throws her hands in the air in surrender. "Okay, okay" she concedes while walking toward the door. She places her hand on the cold doorknob and hesitates. "Thanks Midget" she says soberly before leaving the room.

.

* * *

.

Donna runs down the hall to the elevator and presses the button insistently, her chest coiling tighter with every ding as she watches the lighted panel to see how much farther the lift still has to ascend.

.

"Come on. Come on. Come on." she chants, bouncing in place and smacking the button a few more times for good measure.

.

As the last dings sounds and the doors pull open, she flies into the carriage before even allowing the passengers inside to exit freely.

.

"Really sorry sir, I'm in a huge rush!" she shouts breathlessly before slamming her hand down on the 'door close' button just before she turns around to find Eric in front of her, the doors about to close in his face.

.

They both frantically throw their arms to block the doors from shutting, but they're too late.

.

"Fuck!" she yells, quickly pushing the button for the 19th floor.

.

The doors open on the floor below and Donna sprints toward the stairwell, taking long strides to climb them in half the time.

.

She arrives on the 20th floor swings open with a loud bang, slamming the stairwell door gracelessly into the wall, which Donna then awkwardly attempts to pose against in a casual manner.

.

At the sound of the booming rattle Eric turns, his face registering a mixture of amusement and relief. "Hey" he smiles, unsure of how physically friendly he's allowed to be with her.

.

She exhales the breath she's been holding since the elevator doors first closed in her face and smiles warmly back. "Hey."

.

"You're just the person I was looking for" he tells her, one hand stroking the small velvet box sitting in his pocket as he approaches her.

.

"I was?" she asks shyly, hugging one of her arms. "You're just the person I was looking for too" she admits, wearing familiar emotions as comfortably as her favorite old dress. "Guess it's serendipity." she murmurs and grabs onto his arm, leading him down the hall toward his hotel room.

.

"I have something for you." Eric says, reaching into his pocket. He pulls out the velvet box and hands it to her.

.

Donna's heart sinks. "That's not an engagement ring, is it?" she asks worriedly.

.

"God no" Eric gasps. "Just open it." he encourages with the hope that she won't throw it in his face. 'What a fi yu, cyaan be un fi yu' he reminds himself, hoping that Bowie's parting advice holds true for him.

.

She flips open the top of the box and pulls out a platinum chain with a diamond encrusted dove charm hanging from it. "Oh my God, Eric! This is beautiful. It's so pretty I'm even going to pretend it wasn't funded with drug money."

.

He holds a finger up. "Actually, that little beauty was funded with gambling money. Feel better now?"

.

She starts laughing. "I love it. Is it a dove?"

.

He nods. "They mate for life. It was between that and something called a shingleback skink, but the jeweler seemed to be all out of those" he explains as he fastens it around her neck.

.

"Thank you" she smiles and kisses him on the cheek.

.

"Donna, I know there isn't much time before the ceremony, but I really have to get a few things off my chest." he pleads, his eyes begging her to listen.

.

She nods and then pulls her bottom lip into her mouth pensively.

.

"Those times I left, they never had anything to do with you. I think I've been holding a lot in over the years and I just didn't know how to talk about it, or even how to understand it. Don't know if you've noticed, but there's not a lot of encouragement to express oneself in the Forman household. Red sort of, um...frowns on people who talk about how they feel. I mean, that's one man who really knows how to repress." he remarks, causing her to erupt in sympathetic laughter.

.

"I think that as a result I haven't really let myself need you as much as I should have. I've been making decisions for myself like they don't affect your life, and I'm so sorry. I hope you know I'd do anything to take back all of the hurt I've caused you, but one thing I can promise is that things will be different from now on. I'll be more of a team player and I'll never just leave you like that again. Hell, I won't even leave the house to get breakfast before discussing it with you!" he runs his hands through his hair. "We met each other so young, and I guess it was ridiculous for us to expect we wouldn't make a hundred dumb mistakes before we grew up, but when you find the love of your life when you're seven, these things happen. Just know, that under this ruggedly handsome package is a man who loves you and would do anything for another chance to prove to you that he is worth it. I'm worth the risk, Donna. I promi-"

.

Before Eric has a chance to get another word out, Donna grabs him and slams him against the wall, crushing her lips against his, kissing him like it's the first time.

.

"I'm going to take that as a 'yes'?" he sighs with relief, grinning against her cheek while he tangles his hands in her hair.

.

She gives him a smoldering look. "Room key" she demands breathlessly and begins placing soft kisses along his neck.

.

"Pocket" he murmurs as he runs his lips tenderly over hers.

.

She shoves her hand into his pocket and his eyes go wide. "That is not my key."

.

"I know" she whispers hoarsely as they slowly move toward the door of his room. "Hurry" she pushes.

.

He fumbles with the key card and they tumble into the room, pulling their clothes off as they go.

.

* * *

.

**BEWARE- sMut happening right here! Right now! Rated M!**

.

Now down to her undergarments, Donna scoots herself back onto the bed and waits for Eric. Even though it's only been a handful of months since they'd last been with each other, to her it feels oddly reminiscent of their first time together. There had been a wedding that night too, and she felt the same nervous tingling at the base of her stomach then, that's now working it's way slowly up her esophagus and into her brain.

.

So many years together, and far too many 'first times' between the two of them. Their constant breaks may have added passion to their many reunions, but they were always followed by a crippling emotional fatigue that Donna has a hard time getting out from under.

.

As she slowly slides one strap of her black satin bra down her arm, she closes her eyes for a moment and prays this is the last first time they'll ever have together.

.

"Allow me, m'lady" Eric offers, sidling up to his lover with eager hands. He glides his fingertips softly across her collar bone and down her arm, taking the strap with them, then walks them gently over to the other side and does the same.

.

He leans forward and captures her mouth with his own as his fingers circle behind her and unhook her bra. He pulls back to look at his handiwork and sighs. "God, I've missed you." he exclaims and leans over to roughly tease her nipples with his tongue, causing her to moan softly like a kitten.

.

She grabs the hem of his shirt and yanks it off over his head, then stretches out on the mattress to look at him from below. "Get over here" she smiles.

.

He lifts one of her legs over his shoulder and turns to kiss her instep, then inches his way down her long leg with his mouth, imagining that this must be what the world's sexiest funslide is like. He hoists her other leg onto his other shoulder and tenderly pulls her body toward him. "I've wanted to do this all week" he grins mischievously.

.

Donna giggles and hides her eyes under folded arms.

.

"No way" he snaps, quickly pulling her arms from her face. "I want to watch you. I've been thinking about that sexy face you make when you come for the last two months."

.

She sighs melodramatically. "If you insist."

.

Eric gently brushes his fingers over her firm nipples and gives them each a little tweak before leaning over to kiss her stomach. "Has anybody ever told you before how sexy your bellybutton is?" he asks as he dips his tongue into it, causing a shiver to run through her body.

.

"Just you, Eric. Every time you see me naked" she blushes, enjoying the little ritual they always share when they're in bed together. She'd wondered if he would still remember to do it after so much time apart, and hearing him say it kind of makes her feel like her life has gotten a few shades more normal.

.

He runs his nose along the apex of her thighs and leaves a small kiss on the barrier of black satin separating him from his goal. After pulling down her underwear he buries his face in her wet core and sucks hard, causing her to cry out unexpectedly before soothing the area with his warm tongue.

.

"Holy crap" she exhales, a broad smile overtakes her face. "By all means..." she says, inviting him to continue.

.

Eric works Donna into a frenzy with his mouth until she's ripped nearly all of the sheets from the corners of the mattress. Sweat beads on her brow and her senses heighten - if she closes her eyes hard enough she can almost taste the salt air. She grinds against him a little more and then comes loudly, shouting his name.

.

"I love you, Donna" he smiles, pleased with the result of his effort.

.

"I love you too" she grins back as he leans her against the headboard and enters her with a groan.

.

She wraps her legs around his waist and locks them tightly as he begins stroking her at an agonizingly slow pace.

.

Impatient, she grabs his ass and pulls him deep into her, begging him with her eyes to make her feel it, to make her believe he's back where he belongs and he'll never leave.

.

He picks up the pace and slams into her at a frantic speed and her hips buck to match him. Before she has a moment to catch her breath, she can feel her muscles clench again as he sends her over the edge. "Fuck Eric!" she screams. Watching his redhead losing control triggers his own release into her quivering core with a long moan.

.

Afterward, they lie side by side in the bed, hands intertwined as they regain their bearings.

.

"Wow." she says simply before looking over at her boyfriend with adoring eyes.

.

"Yeah." he breathes and smiles back. "I'm sure it won't suck as much the next time we do it." he jokes.

.

She smacks his chest before rolling herself onto it. "I guess we're just going to have to practice more, huh?"

.

He kisses the top of her head. "I will clear my schedule."

.

**A/N – Okay. The next and definitely final chapter has been written, but I'm just decheesifying it. It's really hard to do wedding vows for a guy who hates to talk about himself! Let me know if you liked the Donna/Eric reunion...and if you _really_ liked it, consider marking this fic as a 'favorite' :)**

**.**

**Thanks for reading!**


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N - Okay, so the wedding is _totally_ mushy, which as you know, is not really my thing. In most of my fics, I always skip over J/H vows, because I can't imagine Hyde ever announcing anything out loud. I decided to write them this time as a challenge. I wanted to see if I could have him declare his love for her in front of everybody without appearing majorly OOC. You will have to tell me if it worked :)**

**.**

**I can't believe this story is finally ending. I really want to thank everybody (especially my regular reviewers) for sticking with it and leaving such great comments. You know I always like taking the gang on a wild, dark ride, which not everybody can handle, so I really appreciate those of you who have been into it.**

**.**

**The next (and possibly last?) full-length T70S fic I'm doing will be a HUGE departure from the stuff I've done before, so it may take me a little while to start posting stuff. It also probably won't be as smutty but no promises, because you know I can't help myself when it comes to J/H in bed. LOL.**

**.**

**PS- I'm going out with a bang—literally. So, keep your eyes peeled for some wedding night whoopie. Hope you like the last chapter!**

**.**

**CHAPTER 29**

**.**

On the beach, Kelso carries Brooke on his back, runs to a lounge chair and lays her down. He then immediately covers her with his own body and starts groping her comically, eliciting squeals of laughter from the statuesque beauty.

.

He looks around, then covertly pulls the ties of the cabana frame they're under and all four sides come tumbling down, closing them off from the world.

.

Two minutes later Brooke emerges running from the tent with Kelso hot on her heels. "The wedding is in ten minutes, you horndog!"

.

"I can work with that!" he shouts after her. "Damn Brooke!" he pouts, before accepting his consolation prize of a sweet kiss.

.

"Later" she promises, before grabbing his hand and leading him to the

.

Fez and Angie are walking along the shore holding hands.

.

"Hey Fez" Angie points to the water. "fishing boats!" she smiles coyly at him.

.

Fez leads her out to the water's edge and they kick their shoes off. He grabs her waist and pulls her into a tango hold.

.

"You tango?" she asks, truly surprised.

.

"Look at me Angie" he smirks, gesturing to his midsection as he holds the perfect dance posture. "Was there ever any doubt?" He gives her his best 'stallion' face, which has her rolling with laughter.

.

He twirls her down the shore, turning her expertly, as he hikes her leg up and around his own before deeply dipping her. Before he has a chance to pull her back up, she lifts her head and plants a soft kiss on Fez's lips, catching him completely off-guard.

.

"Was that okay?" she wonders nervously, worried she may have misread his intentions.

.

"The judges give it a ten" he smiles before leaning down to kiss her back.

.

* * *

.

Jackie makes her way down the beach with Donna and Eric, looking shellshocked and out of it.

.

"Are you okay, Jackie?" Donna asks, running her hand down her friend's arm.

.

"I'm fabulous. It's my wedding day, how could I not be?" she asks almost manically.

.

"Where are your shoes?" she wonders, noticing the tiny bride's bare feet.

.

"I lost them. I'm sure it's not a sign of anything, right?" she asks with a nervous laugh.

.

Donna and Eric exchange a look of concern.

.

"And here I always thought Hyde would be the one getting cold feet" she whispers to her boyfriend.

.

"I'll handle this" he assures her and before sending her off to the others with a kiss.

.

* * *

.

A man with sideburns wearing a white gauze shirt open to the navel, mills around under a small tent frame covered in hot pink azaleas.

.

"Who is that?" Kelso leans over and asks his wife. He's never seen the guy before in his life, but he looks so damn familiar to him. He figures he must be one of Jackie's relatives, because he really knows how to work the hell out of resort-wear.

.

Brooke buries her face in Michael's shoulder. "Oh my God. I can't believe she actually went through with it. I really figured she'd lose her nerve closer to the ceremony."

.

"What are you talking about? Do you know that dude? I swear I've seen him somewhere before" he squints, trying to recall a bar or club where they may have crossed paths.

.

"You have" she confirms. "You saw him in 1981 at Navy Pier" she informs him, still completely blown away by her little friend's gumption.

.

Suddenly, the man pulls an acoustic guitar out from behind some chairs and straps it on.

.

"Cool. He plays the guitar too. Maybe I've jammed with him somewhere" the wheels in Kelso's mind continue whirring. He's well aware that he's never 'jammed' with anybody but Eric Forman (on electronic keyboard), and that was in middle school, but his chick doesn't need to know that.

.

"Oh, you dumb beautiful bastard" Fez laments. "How can you not see that he is the man often referred to as the 'Jewish Elvis'?"

.

"Elvis was Jewish?" his intellectually-challenged friend asks with total seriousness.

.

The man starts strumming his guitar softly at the very moment Hyde makes his appearance on the beach.

.

"I got the license sorted out, so we're all good now" he informs Donna, a millisecond before laying eyes on his uninvited guest.

.

_**Hello again, hello****  
****Just called to say hello****  
****I couldn't sleep at all tonight****  
****And I know it's late****  
****But I couldn't wait**_

.

The mystery man wails on his guitar with purpose now as he saunters in place singing the song "Hello Again" by Neil Diamond.

.

Hyde, raises an eyebrow at the singer and then locks eyes with Donna, who stifles a laugh.

.

Angie and Fez rock back and forth together, holding hands.

.

"Holy crap! Jackie knows Neil Diamond?" Kelso exclaims as he slowly bobs his head along with the music and ghosts the song's chords on his air guitar.

.

The groom looks as though he just stepped in a pile of dog shit. "...the fuck?"

.

Donna, still working hard to suppress her laughter, grits the back of her teeth and pats her buddy on the shoulder. "You did tell Jackie she could plan the whole wedding."

.

_**Hello, my friend, hello**__**  
**__**Just called to let you know**__**  
**__**I think about you ev'ry night**__**  
**__**When I'm here alone**__**  
**__**And you're there at home, hello**_

.

"I think it's romantic" Brooke pipes in, hoping to soften the fallout her friend is sure to suffer later on.

.

"Yeah, why doesn't that surprise me?" he cracks, gazing out at her idiot husband, now completely 'in the zone' with his air guitar routine.

.

"It's not _that_ bad..." Angie says, trying to make her brother feel better. "It could have been Elton John."

.

"Not helping" Hyde snaps.

.

_**Maybe it's been crazy**__**  
**__**And maybe I'm to blame**__**  
**__**But I put my heart above my head**__**  
**__**We've been through it all**__**  
**__**And you loved me just the same**__**  
**__**And when you're not there**__**  
**__**I just need to hear**_

.

"She's not expecting me to get married by Neil Diamond" he says in disbelief, more of a statement than a question.

.

Donna raises her shoulders sheepishly and weakly smiles. "_I Got the Feelin' _you should just probably just suck it up or you might find your _Love on the Rocks. _I wouldn't want to see you become a _Solitary Man_ again."

.

Hyde stares at his old friend blankly. "You been working on that one long?"

.

"Maybe an hour?" she playfully punches his arm.

.

_**Hello, my friend, hello**__**  
**__**It's good to need you so**__**  
**__**It's good to love you like I do**__**  
**__**And to feel this way**__**  
**__**When I hear you say, hello**_

.  
He turns to all of his friends, who have been bracing themselves for the inevitable explosion, and sighs. "You know what? Fuck it, man. If she wants to get married by some pansy in a pirate shirt, then... whatever."

.

Donna's brow furrows. She hates when he answers questions with that ambiguous word, because she never knows what the hell he's saying. "Meaning...?"

.

"This isn't exactly Jackie's dream wedding so, you know, I guess it's okay if it's not exactly mine either" he shrugs. "I only care that she's wearing my ring at the end of it."

.

The redhead places her hand over her heart. "Aww Hyde! You looooove her!" Donna starts taunting him by making kissing noises.

.

"Shut up." Hyde bites back a smile. "And if any of you dolts breathe a fucking word about this theme wedding to anybody who isn't currently on this beach, you're going to find yourselves washed up on it." he threatens gravely while shaking his head.

.

_**Hello, my friend, hello****  
****Just called to let you know****  
****I think about you ev'ry night****  
****And I know it's late****  
****But I couldn't wait****  
****Hello**_

.

Fake Neil takes a bow, basking in the glow of Kelso and Fez's enthusiastic applause and catcalls.

.

* * *

.

The Neil Diamond impersonator motions for everybody to take their seats. Hyde stands uncomfortably under the flower tent and groans audibly as Fake Neil launches into a rendition of the song "Stones".

.

_**Stones would play inside her head  
And where she slept,  
They made her bed  
And she would ache  
for love **_

_**And get but stones**_

_**La la la la la la la la la**_

.

Huddled behind a nearby cabana, Jackie and Eric get ready to walk to the tent for the ceremony.

.

"Interesting choice, Jackie" Eric nods, trying to keep a straight face.

.

Jackie rolls her eyes. "Not that your musical taste really counts for much (she pretends to sneeze but really shouts the word 'Styx'), but I picked him because he reminds me of my daddy."

.

He leans his head toward her with a look of confusion. "Your dad looks like Neil Diamond?"

.

"No dorkus. My dad used to play this song a lot when I was little. Sometimes we would dance to it." she explains, looking out onto the horizon to avoid the inevitable look of pity.

.

Even in her wedding whites on the happiest day of her life, Jackie is still reduced to feeling like a little girl whenever she thinks about her father.

.

Without a word, Eric wraps one arm around his friend and she leans her head on his shoulder. "You look really beautiful, you know."

.

"I know. " she nods her head then smiles up at him. "Thank you, Eric."

.

_**Lordy, child**__**  
**__**A good day's comin'**__**  
**__**And I'll be there to let the sun in**__**  
**__**And bein' lost**__**  
**__**Is worth the comin' home**_

_**La la la la la la la la la on stones**_

.

He tightens his grip around her waist. "This is nice. It reminds me a little of Mexico" he says absentmindedly, referring to the beach.

.

Though Tampico used to be nearly a curse word to them, a name that signified all of the pain they were dealing with inside at the time, it's now taken on a sepia-tinged hue, triggering only good memories of their time bonding in the mirror world.

.

She takes a few breaths in an attempt to blow all the negative feelings out. "It's weird to get married without him here, but I'm glad you're here to give me away."

.

He hitches up his belt. "Well, I did teach my little girl to swim in deep water, so it's only right that I be the one to give her away."

.

She squeezes his hand and smiles.

.

Eric is desperate to assuage her melancholy, but is cautious, knowing full-well he only has a 5% change of saying something helpful. He clears his throat anxiously and turns to her. "I know you've had like, every detail of your wedding planned out since you were three, and this probably is nothing like you imagined, you know, with your family not being here and all..."

.

Jackie places her hand on his arm. "My family is here, Eric. The family that matters anyway. I mean, my dad checked out long before he went to prison, and my mom...well, you've experienced that one firsthand."

.

"I know, but you're still allowed to be sad they're not here." he tells her.

.

"Yeah..." she trails off for a moment. Jackie straightens out the wrinkles in her wedding dress and decides it's time to buoy her spirits. "Hey, who really cares anyway if they're not? I mean, Fez is going to cry much harder at the ceremony than my mother would have, and if I squint my eyes hard enough you're the spitting image of Jack Burkhart...you know, if he had low muscle-tone and small bones."

.

"On that note...I can honestly say I am very much looking forward to giving you away" he snarks.

.

"As if you could get rid of me" she taunts in her best sing-song. "Come on, we should probably start the ceremony before Steven's high wears off and he realizes where he is" she jokes as they begin walking toward the tent.

.

* * *

.

Hyde catches the first glimpse of his bride and his breath catches. He knew she was going to look beautiful, but he had no idea she would look this beautiful – or that it was even possible for anyone to look this beautiful.. His pulse is racing, yet he feels an overwhelming sense of calm at the same time. His eyes scan her form then lock with hers and they both smile with giddiness.

.

_**You and me, a time for planting**__**  
**__**You and me, a harvest granting**__**  
**__**The every prayer ever prayed**__**  
**__**For just two wild flowers that grow**_

_**La la la la la la la la la on stones**_

_**Mmmmmmmm...**_

.

Eric lifts Jackie's veil and cups her face with one hand. "She's all yours" he tells the groom as he places her hand in Hyde's.

.

Jackie places a small kiss on Eric's cheek before he leaves her to take his place as best man.

.

Through their peripheral vision, Jackie and Hyde check each other out, sending one another messages with their eyes throughout the ceremony. They used to do the same thing at school, before the general population knew they were a couple and in the basement when they were sneaking around. It's their second language and the one in which they both can be sure to always say the right thing.

.

Fake Neil gestures to Hyde to start reciting his vows, and Hyde instinctively reaches for a tie to loosen, but as he's not wearing one, he finds it's just his nerves that are choking him today.

.

"I'm first? Crap. You know I'd rather get waterboarded than talk about feelings, so that fact that I'm up here doing it should really show you how I feel about you, doll. I hope you're recording this though, because this is a 'one night only' engagement." he warns, palms getting clammier as his big moment approaches. He pulls out a large index card from his pocket and takes a minute to psyche himself up.

.

Jackie laughs and squeezes his hand in solidarity.

.

"Now, I don't know if you know this baby, but you've saved my life a few times. The first time was just after we had that blow out on New Year's in 1980. You left town and I didn't know if I'd ever see you again, which much to my surprise, made me pretty miserable. A few days after that I'd pretty much made up my mind that I was going to hunt you down and force you to spend the rest of your life with me." he confesses, her eyes growing wider with each revelation.

.

"Then Donna very helpfully pointed out what a huge burnout I was at the time, and that if I was ever gonna to get you to speak to me again I'd have to make myself into the kind of guy who was worthy of being with somebody like you. So I did. If you hadn't left that night I'd probably be pumping gas or in jail or worse." he licks his lips nervously and flashes her a half-smile.

.

By this point, Jackie's hand has made it's way to her mouth and she nervously touches her lips.

.

"The second time you saved my life was in Chicago after I was shot in that robbery. You had no reason to take care of me, I definitely didn't deserve your kindness, but you did it anyway. You nursed me back to health - and then I fucked up and hurt you again and you wanted to run off, but you stayed and dressed my wounds anyway. Nobody ever put me first before." He meets her eyes for a moment then hastily looks away. His breath is ragged as he desperately tries to will himself not to tear up like a pussy in front of all of his friends.

.

Tears begin to well in Jackie's eyes and she tips her head back to blink them away.

.

"The third time you saved my life was a week ago, when you said you'd marry me. I know I've always said I can never be happy, and for the most part it's true. But you know, I realized that I actually _can_ be happy, but I just can't be happy without you."

.

Her mouth drops open in shock as her chest begins to heave. "Oh, Steven..."

.

"I love you Jackie and I trust you, okay? I promise I will always be there from now on, taking care of you as good as you take care of me, and if you hold up your half of that bargain we made last week, I'll even talk to you about serious shit when you want me to. Most of the time, at least.

.

Jackie grapples for him and they kiss passionately, each holding the other's face in their hands.

.

"It's not time yet" Fake Neil gingerly taps Hyde on the shoulder, but is dismissively waved away like a gnat in the summertime. Their friends catcall and hoot in the background.

.

They both catch their breath and Hyde wipes away her tears with his thumbs.

.

"And now we'll hear from Jacqueline." the impersonator announces.

.

Jackie takes several deep breaths to calm down before speaking. She bites her lip, now swollen from being soundly kissed and takes Steven's hand.

.

"The first time we met each other, I really hated you." she smiles as their friends start laughing.

.

Hyde rolls his eyes and shakes his head.

.

"I thought you were the rudest, most arrogant, laziest, scruffiest bully around." she continues, still radiating love like a furnace.

.

"Tell 'em how you really feel, Jackie!" Kelso shouts through cupped hands.

.

"But then I got to know you better, and even though you were still all of those things, you were also so much more. Even though I wasn't your favorite person, you always protected me. You held me every time I cried over a breakup, and went to prom with me when I needed a date, even though you hate school, dancing, dressing up and organized activities. You punched that guy out for calling me a bad word, and taught me to have confidence and how to defend myself. You even went to jail for me! It turns out that underneath all of those miscreant layers was the kindest, sweetest, most loving man I'd ever met. And yeah, you're still a little scruffy around the edges, but I've realized that I really really like you that way." she coos, resting one hand on his chest.

.

He winks at her.

.

"How could I not fall hopelessly in love with you-even if you only thought of me as your annoying little sister?" she sighs.

.

"I never thought of you as my sister" he asserts with a half-cocked smile.

.

"You were the first person who ever talked to me like I was more than just a pretty face – and listened to my opinion like it mattered. Even I didn't think I was anything more than devastatingly beautiful until you provoked me to be more. You challenged me and it changed me. I mean, I know I'm still a handful, and I can be pushy and selfish a lot of the time, but I like that you make me see the other side of things, even if it means I don't always get my way. You're, like, the only person in this entire world who totally understands me, Steven" she says quietly as tears start to stream down her face again.

.

He rubs her arm gently.

.

"There will never be anybody else for me – never, Steven - and I promise I'll do whatever it takes to make you happy for the rest of our lives." she declares, smiling through the salty haze. "And for the record, when I was leaving for Chicago and gave you that stupid ultimatum, I didn't want to get married just to be married – I only just wanted to marry you."

.

Before Fake Neil has a chance to complete the ceremony, Jackie and Hyde are at it again, pawing away at each other like sailors on leave.

.

Donna whistles loudly to get their attention and they settle down, glancing furtively at one another as they hold hands and wait impatiently for the ceremony to be completed.

.

They hastily exchange rings, and at moment they're declared married, Hyde scoops Jackie up and runs down the beach with her wrapped around his waist, desperate to get her alone.

.

Eric winds his arm around Donna's waist and pulls her closer. "That was some ceremony, no?"

.

She lets out a soft whistle. "I thought we were going to have to hose them down like cats."

.

"Yeah, who knew a wedding could come with an X rating?" he riffs.

.

"I hope when we get married we'll be a little more dignified" she tuts in a fake hoity-toity accent.

.

Eric's heart leaps out of his chest and he looks down at her with a shy smile.

.

Misreading his look, she corrects herself. "Well, I mean not _too_ dignified. I'd still like to get a little tongue action after the ceremony, if you know what I mean" she jokes, nudging her man slightly in the ribs.

.

Eric's smile grows bolder as he turns to face her.

.

Starting to feel self-conscious, she tucks a flyaway hair behind her ear and knits her brow. "What? What did I say?"

.

He lift the dove charm off her neck and holds it between his fingers, then kisses her gently on the lips as if hinting at a promise. "You said, 'when we get married'." he drops the pendant and touches her nose.

.

She opens her mouth then closes it again, gulping a little air in the process. "I guess I did." she shrugs, looking down to hide her grin.

.

"You did" he smiles in relief and then kisses her again.

.

* * *

.

**This section is rated M for sMut! If you don't like to read about people getting busy, turn away now!**

.

Back in the bridal suite, Hyde carried his bride over the threshold and places her on the bed like a perfect, porcelain doll. He slides down next to Jackie and places his head in her lap.

.

"I can't believe we're really married" she says while stroking his hair, still floating in a stupor from the ceremony.

.

"Let the resentment, mutual hostility and sexless existence begin!" he decrees sarcastically.

.

"Steeeven!" she snaps. "You don't really think that, do you?" her large eyes emanating hurt.

.

He laughs at his ability to wind her up. "No. I mean, I'm pretty sure I'll still want to bang you no matter how much we resent each other."

.

She shoves him off her lap, crosses her arms over her chest and pouts her bottom lip out. "I don't know why you even bothered proposing if that what you thought marriage would be like." she sniffs.

.

He crawls over to her and lays his head back on her lap. She shakes her hips to try to get him off again, but he wraps his arms around her waist and holds himself there. "You're not getting rid of me that easily." he warns gruffly.

.

"Who says I'm getting rid of you? How can I exact my revenge on you if you're not here?" she wonders earnestly.

.

He looks up at her with his uncovered eyes and grins widely. He'll take demanding and bitchy over boring and colorless any day of the week."I love you, doll."

.

"I know" she responds, trying her hardest not to grin back. This is their first disagreement as a married couple and she'll be damned if she's going to set a precedent by losing the argument to him.

.

"Come on. Give me a little smile." He entices, sliding one hand up the skirt of her wedding dress. Hyde runs his hand along the small strip of silk between her legs and groans inwardly when he feels how wet she is.

.

She steels her resolve. "No."

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Hyde moves the crotch of her underwear to the side and replaces it with his fingers. "Coooome on. One smile."

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She shifts a little bit as he increases their contact. "No."

.

He pulls her roughly onto her back and slips his head under her billowing skirt. Jackie's eyes roll back in her head and she struggles to keep her composure. "Are you smiling now?" he asks from underneath her dress.

.

She shivers and places both palms over her face. "No." she says through muffled hands.

.

He reappears from beneath her dress. "Well if that doesn't make you smile baby, then I give up."

.

She bolts upright. "Don't you dare stop, Steven Hyde!"

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He straddles her legs and leans over. "One smile baby, and I'm right back to work" he whispers hotly just behind her ear.

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She shakes her head no.

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He kisses her neck while running his fingers through her hair. "But you're so beautiful when you smile" he murmurs into the hollow of her neck.

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Her hands ball up into tiny fists and she can feel her toes curling each time he makes contact with her skin. "No." she pants through her arousal.

.

Hyde strokes her hair away from her face and looks in her eyes. "You and me are family now, and I can't have you moping around next to me for the next 50 years, Jackie."

.

Suddenly, she's lit from within and the corners of her mouth start to turn up. "We are family now, aren't we?" she asks, thinking of all of the holidays she's spent alone throughout the years. Whenever people in Chicago would ask about her family, she always found a way to change the subject or make a joke. Anything to keep the embarrassment from having nothing to say at bay. But now, if someone asked her about her family she could just look them in the eye, smile and show them a picture of her gorgeous husband.

.

"Yeah." he says softly, knowing this concept would mean as much to her as it does to him. "We're a team."

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"Okay, I'll smile then." she acquiesces. "Wouldn't want to start a family argument over it" she jokes, her bee-stung mouth curling into one of the most brilliant smiles he's ever seen.

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"The strangest things turn you on, baby." He chuckles, kissing her gently before hoisting her skirt up around her waist and pulling off her underwear.

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"Do you want me to take the dress off?" she offers, searching with her hands for the zipper.

.

He grabs her hands and places them over her head. "Don't you fucking dare" he growls. "I've been waiting _years_ to screw you in a wedding dress."

.

Jackie laughs. "Not since Halvertson's?"

.

Hyde shrugs. "Maybe" he answers, noncommittally. The truth is, he _had_ been dreaming about making love to her in a wedding dress since that day he walked in on her illicit shopping excursion at Halverston's. She thought he'd been mad at her because she ran her mouth about them getting married one day, but he was really only mad that the site of her in a wedding dress made _him_ think about getting married one day. And that it turned him on.

.

"I've been thinking about it all day." he admits, letting his fingers trace the sweetheart neck of her gown.

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"Have you now? Well, I did promise to do whatever it takes to make you happy" she coos, wrapping one of her legs around the back of him.

.

"That, is a vow you are going to regret making. Especially when I ask you to do that one 'thing' and you try to give me your usual no response." he taunts.

.

Jackie narrows her eyes seductively "Who says I plan to say no?"

.

He mouth drops open. "Oh fuck, are you serious?"

.

She smiles coyly and unzips her new husband's pants. "But first, you're going to finish what you started." she orders, her small hand stroking the length of his erection.

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"Yes, dear" he responds, lifting her other leg around his back before sliding inside of her and pulling her onto his lap.

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"Oh God, Steven. That feels..." she takes in a sharp gasp of air and he rocks her on his lap, lifting her up and down by her hips as he thrust into her waiting heat.

.

His hands wander under her skirt and grabs her bare ass, bringing it toward him over and over again until Jackie climaxes harder and louder than she ever has. Hyde clenches his muscles and joins her, screaming out her name as he strokes them both through their completion.

.

She collapses on top of him, knocking him on to his back. "Holy shit" she pants. "What—what was that?" she mumbles, shivering uncontrollably.

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He wraps his arms around her and kisses her head. "_That_ was first of many, many orgasms I plan to give you over the next 50 years."

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He pulls her along side of him and cups her face gently, giving her a languid, passionate kiss. She raises her hands to cradle his face as well, and deepens their kiss for a moment before breaking apart to come up for air.

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She wets her lips and lets out a huge breath. "And to think, for years you didn't want to get married."

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"I never claimed to be the smartest guy in the room, Jackie. Only the coolest." he grins cheekily before kissing leaning over to kiss his wife again.

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**A/N – Well, that's all folks! If you liked it, please consider making it a favorite :)**

**I cannot tell you how much all of your reviews and comments have meant—from the guests to the regulars. All of you have really helped me get through this long long story. I hope you enjoyed reading it, because I really enjoyed writing it. Hope you look for my new fic when I start posting. **

**xox, Pamela (aka. ShanghaiLily)**


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